


Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing

by Black_Papess



Category: From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series, Supernatural
Genre: Drug Use, M/M, Oral Sex, Profanity, Sex, Sibling Incest, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-20
Updated: 2017-01-05
Packaged: 2018-08-15 05:08:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 29,924
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8043718
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Black_Papess/pseuds/Black_Papess
Summary: "You ever love someone so much you thought your little heart was gonna break in two?" -Chris IsaakThis crossover fic follows the story line from "Preacher's Daughter No More", though you could just read it as a standalone if you like. I don't intend for this story to be quite as long as it's predecessor but I'm not certain how many chapters it will take to see it to the end.





	1. Lost and Found

Heavy rock music shattered the tranquil quiet of the night, it pulled at Sam, dragging him unwillingly from a deep, peaceful slumber. He opened grainy eyes to look at the clock, 4:19 glowed red in the dark and his eyelids slid shut. The music stopped and Sam dared to let himself drift off.

He jumped as the rock tone assaulted his ears once more.

Groaning he rolled over, glaring at his brother through the darkness. "Dean! Get your phone." The music kept playing persistently out of reach on his brother's night stand. "DEAN! PHONE!" He yelled across the room at his brother. The noise had no effect on Dean, he kept snoring away peacefully.

Sam grumbled and stretched, preparing to roll out of bed but Dean's phone finally stopped going off. He sighed into the blissful silence.

Then _his_ phone started going off. His hand slapped the nightstand, groping, until his fingers finally closed around the vibrating phone. He exhaled irritably as he fumbled the answer key, "Hello?" his voice scratched groggily.

"Finally! I don't know why I even tried your brother's phone, I just thought Dean would wanna be the first to hear the news."

"Bobby, is that you?"

"Of course it is, you told me to call the second I heard something! Listen Sam, I found her."

Sam shook his head, trying to clear the cobwebs of sleep from his mind. "Found who?"

"Not who, ya idgit, it's what. I found Baby!"

Sam sat straight up in bed, after months of searching he didn't think it was possible. He looked over at his sleeping brother, Dean had been heartbroken since the day the Impala was taken. "Bobby, that's great news! Dean will be thrilled!"

"Yeah well don't break out the party balloons just yet, you still gotta get her back. I just got a call from an old friend, Baby ain't in Mexico no more. You boys better haul your butts back up to the States."


	2. Swan Song

Richard adjusted his horn rimmed glasses one last time.

"You ready?"

Seth shrugged despondently. "Yeah, let's just get this shit over with." The only thing Seth Gecko cared much about anymore was his next fix. Moonlight glinted off the thin sheen of sweat coating his face and his hands moved ceaselessly, grasping at his pant leg or running up his arm to scratch another phantom itch. Every day since Kate's death had been a tortured existence for the man, his only relief was the dark oblivion of a smack filled needle.

Trying to find a way to pull Seth from his griefstricken path of slow destruction Richie had spent months searching tirelessly for their old car. His big brother had loved that '67 Mercury Cougar. When he had found it a couple of weeks back he was ecstatic, sure that the sight of it would elicit some sort of response, a glimmer of the old Seth hidden away behind his junkie haze. Richie had dragged him out to where he had the car parked, practically jumping out of his skin with excitement as he waited for his big brother's reaction. Seth spent all of a minute staring at the car then shook his head sullenly. "Sell it. Or junk it. I don't give a shit." And with that he slunk back to his room, leaving Richie heartbroken and alone.

It didn't matter now. The overwhelming stench of gasoline stung his nostrils and he gagged as he reached over to shift the Cougar into drive. Not wanting to take the chance that the vehicle would simply crash Richie had doused the interior well and good, flicking his Zippo alight he tossed it into the back seat as the car began to roll forward. Flames roared to life as the beautiful black muscle car sailed over the edge of a cliff and smashed into a fiery inferno below.


	3. Egg White Omelette With a Side of Humble Pie

_He slid a hand along the banister as he made his way up the stairs to his apartment, the building was eerily quiet though it was still fairly early in the evening. Sam knew that this was a dream, he desperately willed himself to wake but nothing changed. Opening the door he recited his line, "Jess, you home?" He was an unwilling actor in this horror movie that played out over and over in his mind. It was never dark in their apartment, at night the city lights filtered through the windows illuminating the rooms in a twilit glow and he made his way easily from room to room. The delicious aroma of freshly baked cookies hung in the air and he knew that his sweet girlfriend had made him something special before he even saw the plate on the counter. Any time he went away Jess would have a freshly baked plate of cookies waiting upon his return. It was a tradition that Sam cherished dearly and he smiled at the note she had left atop the pile of cookies. 'Missed you! Love you!' Again he strained against the dream, frantically trying to wake. Sam smiled cheerfully as he gobbled up a cookie on the way to the bedroom. He was a bit disappointed to see that Jess wasn't there but he sat on the bed, sighing contentedly as he finished his cookie then closed his eyes and laid back on the mattress. Something warm and wet dripped to his forehead and he blinked his eyes open as yet another drop landed. Though he already knew what he would see he still gasped in shock, as he did every time this scene played out. Jessica's lifeless body lay pinned to the ceiling above him, her honey blonde hair fanned out around her beautiful face and she stared down at him with empty blue eyes. Blood seeped from a vicious wound cut across her stomach, dripping down onto him. "NO!" He wailed in despair. "JESS, NO!" Flames ignited around her consuming her body and spreading across the ceiling in a roiling sea of fire._

Sam gasped and sat up straight in his seat, breathing heavily. His heart beat out an erratic rhythm and sweat plastered his hair against his forehead.

"You alright Sammy?" Dean looked over at him from the driver's seat as they barreled down the highway in a beat up old Grand Am. "Sam?"

"I'm fine Dean, just a little nightmare is all." He gritted his teeth and stared out the window so that his brother wouldn't see him crying. Stunted looking, brushy scrub and cacti blurred in his vision as the rough landscape of south Texas rolled by.

"You dreamin' about Jess again?"

Taking a deep, shaky breath he cleared his throat and tried to keep his voice steady. "Yeah actually......how'd you know?"

"I'm your brother, I just know these things." Dean said cryptically.

His brother's ridiculous answer made Sam smile in spite of his heartache. "I was talking in my sleep." He swiped at a few stray tears and gave Dean a sidelong glance, arching a dubious eyebrow.

"Yeah, yeah you were. You wanna talk about it?"

It was nice that his brother was trying but he wasn't ready to open up about his dreams just yet, the memory was too raw. Sam clenched his jaw and fought back the fresh wave of grief that was trying to overcome him. "No........I just...I can't right now." He turned back to the window, willing the tears to stop coming.

"It's okay Sammy, we don't gotta talk about it, but I'm here if you need me. Hell I'm here even if you don't." Dean gave his shoulder a sympathetic squeeze and let him be. Relief flooded through him and he stared out the window as they rode on in comfortable silence.

A few hours later they pulled off at a roadside motel. After riding in the car with his brother for two days straight Sam was more than ready for a hot shower and a comfortable bed.

"Alright, we gotta meet Bobby early in the morning. I'm gonna go grab us a room so we can get some shut eye."

Fifteen minutes later Sam was still waiting in the car. Squinting, he peered through the glass door of the motel office at the reason for his brother's dely. The woman working the desk was a cute little blonde, she twisted her hair around her finger and giggled at something Dean said then leaned over the counter toward him, displaying a healthy expanse of cleavage. There was no way his brother would be finished anytime soon so Sam flipped on the radio and settled in to wait.

 _"....SHOUT AT THE DEVIL! HE'LL BE THE LOVE IN YOUR EYES, HE'LL BE THE BLOOD BETWEEN YOUR THIGHS. AND TH-"_ He winced and quickly popped the cassette out of the deck. For a moment Sam debated throwing the tape out the window, he had certainly heard enough Motley Crue to set his teeth on edge during this trip but he thought better of it. When they had lost the Impala to a couple of car thieves down in Mexico Dean's massive collection of 80's rock cassettes had gone with it. Since then he had been slowly rebuilding his collection and the dashboard compartment was now filled to the brim with heavy rock and hair band cassettes. Turning the knob on the radio he flipped through static, country, and pop music before settling on the news.

_"......broke his older brother out of prison during a transfer. They then went on to rob Abilene Mutual Bank in Kansas, making off with thirty-million dollars in bearer bonds and leaving a trail of bodies and destruction in their wake. Authorities have confirmed that the bodies of Richard and Seth Gecko were found this morning burnt to death in a fiery wreck. It is clear that their death was not accidental but no information has been released yet as to who is responsible for the murder of the Gecko brothers. There is speculation that this could be connected to a rash of cartel killings that have taken place on both sides of the border in recent years. There is no word as to the whereabouts of the thirty-million in bearer bonds. We will continue our report as more information....."_

The door opened and Dean slid into the driver's seat wearing a self satisfied smile. "Got us a room." He jingled the key as he held it up for Sam to take. "I call dibs on the shower, I got me a date later."

"What happened to getting some shut eye, we're going to have to get up early to meet with Bobby and you haven't slept in two days!"

"Ahh, I'll be fine. Nothin' like a little t&a to recharge the batteries, oh, and _Kimmy_ has a friend that she's bringin' along. Normally I wouldn't share but you look like you could use a little recharge yourself, could be just what you need."

Sam knew that Dean was just trying to help but he couldn't help feeling a little angry at his brother. They might be family but Dean had an entirely different, somewhat disturbing, and grossly inappropriate view on the steps of grieving. "Uh, no. Thanks. What I need is a good night's sleep, not an _std_."

Dean scoffed as he backed their car out of the parking space. "Hey, a gun's not the only kinda protection I take with me everywhere I go." Sam grimaced and his brother laughed at him. "Whatever, more for me then!"

__

Dean hid another jaw cracking yawn behind his fist as he studied his brother out of the corner of his eye. Sam's eyes were red rimmed and he slumped in his seat, the kid hadn't had a decent night's sleep since Jess died. Morning had come too early for the Winchesters and they had both rolled out of bed bleary eyed and bone weary. Dean could've used at least a couple more hours but Bobby was waiting on them and they were already late by the time they pulled into the parking lot of the roadside diner.

The diner looked a bit run down but Dean knew that it was these kinds of places that always served the best meals. His heart skipped a beat when he saw the sign hanging out front. "Hey look at that Sammy, it says they've got the best pie in the whole state of Texas!" He waggled his eyebrows at Sam and grinned widely as he rubbed his hands together with anticipation. Sam cracked a smile but he rolled his eyes and shook his head ruefully, he just didn't know how to enjoy the little things in life.

They quickly spotted Bobby at one of the tables farthest from the door. His back was to the wall and though he looked at ease his eyes shifted constantly, checking and rechecking the room to be sure that nothing was amiss. The man was a hunter, through and through. A very uncharacteristic smile replaced his usual scowl as he carried on a jovial conversation with the man sitting next to him, they were both laughing about something when Sam and Dean pulled up a seat.

"Hey Bobby, long time no see."

"Hey boys, late night?" Bobby looked them both up and down disapprovingly. "This is the friend I was tellin' you about. Eddie Cruikshank, meet Sam and Dean Winchester."

Eddie looked to be of an age with Bobby, he had a steely gray beard that he kept trimmed short and long silver hair that swept back to his shoulders. His eyes were a striking shade of blue and they shined merrily, as if he were laughing at a joke that only he knew.

Sam reached out to shake the man's hand. "Hey Eddie, it's alway nice to meet a friend of Bobby's."

Dean took his turn shaking Eddie's hand, the man had a warm palm and a firm grip, it was a good, solid handshake. "So Bobby says you've known each other for a while, huh?"

Eddie nodded, "Yeah, we used to work together actually."

The way he said it made Dean curious. "Oh......so you're a....."

 _"Hunter?"_ Eddie chuckled and shook his head emphatically. "Nah, not enough money in that for me. We go _way_ back before all that, you could say we were in the automotive business together."

"They don't wanna hear about all that Eddie." For some reason Bobby gave the man a hard look, as if he didn't want him to talk about their old business. It was odd, especially since Bobby owned a salvage yard. "Listen boys, Eddie here has been tellin' me about some pretty weird stuff that's been happenin' to his friend. It sounds like somethin' that would be right up your ally."

Just then their waitress showed up and they paused their conversation so that they could order. Dean got a disapproving glare from his brother when he ordered a slice of apple pie and coffee. He returned the look with a faux gag when Sam ordered an egg white omelette, his brother ate some of the nastiest crap.

Dean waited impatiently as the waitress finished topping off the older men's coffee and he was practically jumping out of his skin with anxiety by the time she left their table. He couldn't wait any longer, he had to know. "So it sounds like you might have a job lined up for us Eddie but what about Baby? Bobby said you knew where she was."

Eddie looked at him in confusion. _"Baby?"_

Bobby rolled his eyes and scoffed. "It's his name for the Impala, his love affair with that car is the only long term relationship that Dean Winchester's ever had. There isn't a woman in this world that he's treated half as good as he treats _Baby._ "

"Oh! Well then yeah, I know where _Baby_ is." Eddie's eyes glinted mischievously as he chuckled. "I can tell you but I was kinda hopin' you'd help my friend out with her unique situation first."

Something about the way he said it irked Dean but before he could say anything Sam chimed in exasperatedly. "So are you saying that you're not going to tell us where the Impala is unless we help your friend first?" His eyes narrowed as he glared at Eddie. "Saving people, hunting things, it's the family business. You don't have to _blackmail_ us into doing the job."

Eddie held up his hands in a placating gesture. "Whoa, who said anything about blackmail! Listen boys, where I come from you don't get nothin' for free, I just wanna make sure you give my friend a fair chance is all. At least go and talk to her, after that I'll tell you where you can find your car. Promise."

Dean shared a look with his brother. Neither of them liked being pushed into doing something, especially Sammy since he was so stubborn, but it seemed like this was the only way to get Baby back. They wouldn't have turned down the job anyway, even if the man didn't know where the Impala was. "Alright, fine. Where can we find this friend of yours?"

A huge, shit-eating grin spread across Eddie's face, he was obviously pleased with himself. "I'm glad we're all on the same page! Now I know that you've got a good stock of fake IDs for the line of work you're in but you're gonna need somethin' a little more legit for where you're goin'. Don't worry, I've got a guy for that."


	4. My Friend of Misery

Another choking sob wracked her body and Vanessa curled herself tighter beneath her sparse blanket. It had been two days since her heart had been utterly shattered, two days since she had found out that Seth was dead. He had divorced her, denied her visitation when he was locked up, cast her aside for his brother and left her to her fate. Vanessa knew that it made her the biggest sucker on the planet but she loved the man. Her ribs ached as she sobbed convulsively, at this point she was completely drained, there were no more tears but still she cried. Earlier that morning a prison guard had come to collect her and she was moved to solitary, apparently her mournful keening had been too disruptive for the other inmates in her cellblock. At least now she could drown herself in her woes without having to worry about making some particularly surly enemies.

A sudden chill went through her, Vanessa shivered and clutched her blanket tighter as she wallowed in her misery. Another shiver wracked her body and she gasped in terror as the florescent lights in her room flickered fitfully. _It's happening again!_ The lights flickered again then went out and she was plunged into complete blackness. Minutes ticked by as she lay petrified in the dark and she couldn't tell which was louder, her heavy breathing or the fitful beating of her heart. Suddenly there was light, illuminating the room in an erratic glow from above. Vanessa's eyes rolled upward and she let out a terrified shriek. Fire rolled across her ceiling in waves, scorching the sterile white paint and sending out plumes of acrid smoke. Directly above her was a figure completely engulfed in flames, she watched in horror as it began moving, creeping across the ceiling. Down the wall it came, it's limbs jerking unnaturally as it crawled backwards towards her bed. She lay petrified as the form clung to the wall, inches from her. Slowly, slowly, the curtain of flames died away and she screamed in terror. Vanessa was staring into her own face! It was like looking into some ghastly mirror, her features were frozen in a rictus of pain, deep blue eyes glazed over with death. Her macabre reflection reached for her and Vanessa cried out in agony as searing pain jolted up her arm. Then the world went black.

Vanessa sat up in bed, blinking her eyes against the harsh glow of florescent lights. She was completely alone in her room. A quick examination of her cell revealed no signs of a fire, the ceiling remained unblemished, the stark white paint showed no signs of scorching. It all seemed to be just a dream but she knew better. Her hand shook uncontrollably as she lifted her sleeve to inspect her arm, Vanessa knew what she would find but she still needed to see it. There, standing out red and angry on the flesh of her forearm, was a painful burn in the shape of a hand print.

\--

"I'm Agent Hetfield this is my partner Agent Hammet, we're here to see inmate Vanessa Styles." Dean smiled amiably at the prison guard and held up his badge.

Sam flashed his badge and tried not to roll his eyes at his brother's choice of pseudonyms, luckily people took a visit from the FBI pretty seriously and they never really stopped to question the coincidental nature of their names. The guard squinted at both their badges and nodded. "The bureau called to tell us you were coming, she's already in the interrogation room." The "bureau" was actually a dedicated phone line that Bobby kept to make and take "official" phone calls. The guard turned and waved for them to follow him. "Right this way agents." Sam winced as the metal barred doorway closed behind them, if anything went wrong they were going to have a hell of a time trying to escape. As the guard led them along he made some small talk but the further they went it became apparent that he had something he wanted to get off his chest. "I know you guys really want to find that thirty-million but don't you think you've bothered that poor woman enough?" Dean shot him a look and Sam just shook his head, he had no idea what the guy was talking about. "They might not have been married when he died but the woman carried a real torch for him, I mean, she went to _prison_ for the man. If that's not love then I don't know what is. The last agents that came to see her showed her the pictures of the wreck, we had to move her down to solitary to keep her from driving the other inmates crazy with her crying." The wheels turned in his head and suddenly everything snapped into place.

Sam cleared his throat. "We'll try to be as sensitive as we can but, like you said, we need to find that money and the ex-wife of one of the Gecko brothers is one of the best leads that we've got." Dean looked a question at him and Sam rolled his eyes at his brother. If it didn't involve monsters, ghosts, or demons then Dean didn't bother with the news. Sam, on the other hand, had followed the story when it had first come out and he vaguely remembered a woman being arrested for aiding in the escape of one of the infamous Gecko brothers. Vanessa Styles was Seth Gecko's ex-wife. That was a detail that Eddie had forgotten to mention.

They turned down another hallway lined with rows of doors and came to a stop at the fourth one down. The guard unlocked the door and waved them in. "When you're finished just give a knock and I'll let you out."

The interrogation room was tiny, almost claustrophobic. A metal table was anchored to the floor in the middle of the room and at it sat a woman. She had her head down, resting on her arms and her honey blonde hair spread out around her like a curtain, obscuring her face from view. A box of tissues sat close by and there were crumpled up tissues strewn about the table. "Man, you guys must really be short on leads if you're coming here to question me _again._ " Her voice was somewhat muffled as she spoke against the tabletop without lifting her head. "Can't you just leave me in peace to mourn my husband?..........Ex-husband." Her shoulders shook as she began sobbing. Sam's heart went out to her, if she loved her ex even half as much as he loved Jess then she must be in a world of pain right now. Though he could never condone aiding and abetting a dangerous criminal seeing Vanessa so wretched made him feel as though they were connected in their grief.

Dean cleared his throat uneasily, he hated being around crying chicks. "Uh, Ms. Styles? Sorry to bother you in your time of mourning. I'm Agent Hetfield, this is my partner Agent Hammet, we just need to ask you a few questions."

The crying stopped..........."Okay _agents_. You want to ask me a few questions?" Finally her head came up and Sam gasped in shock as he stared into her deep blue eyes. "Look fellas, you can't bullshit a bullshitter. I don't know who you are but you're obviously not a-"

His hand darted across the table to grasp hers fervently. "Jess?!"

Her face screwed up in confusion and she yanked her hand from his grasp. _"No_ it's _Vanessa."_ She arched an irritated eyebrow at him. "Okay guys, who sent you? You look a little young to be working this kinda job for the cartel. Look, I'll tell you the same thing I told the FBI, I don't know where the money is. I haven't seen or heard from Seth since I got arrested." Sam had never expected to see Jessica ever again but the woman sitting across from him shared her exact likeness. Seeing her face so suddenly sent him reeling, he couldn't form a complete thought, much less a complete sentence and his mouth worked soundlessly as he gaped at Vanessa. She gave him an odd look then turned her attention to his brother. "What the hell is wrong with your friend?"

Dean seemed just as bewildered as Sam was but he recovered more quickly from the shock. "Uhh, he's just a little slow on the uptake is all. Listen Vanessa I'm sorry. You're right, we're not agents." he leaned in closer and lowered his voice conspiratorially, "I'm Dean, this is my brother Sam. Eddie sent us." Though the woman was a dead ringer for his recently deceased girlfriend the more Sam studied her he noticed small differences from Jess, for one thing Vanessa must have been at least ten years her senior. The cut of her jawline and cheekbones was more defined and there were fine lines at the corner of her eyes that Jess never had the chance to develop.

Her eyes narrowed. " _Eddie_ sent you?" They nodded and a sudden, dangerous gleam sparked in her eye. "That RAT BASTARD!" They both sat back in shock as she railed at them. "He hasn't been to see me in WEEKS, left me to find out about Seth from some girls in the yard, then he sends in a couple of baby faced boys to talk to me?! I mean, SHIT, I know he's gotta be torn up about the boy's deaths but so am I. Well maybe not so much for Richie." As quickly as the fire in her eyes had flared up it suddenly dissipated and her face softened. "He must be a mess right now, how is he? Is he doing okay?"

In the space of less than a minute the woman had gone through a complete emotional transformation and the Winchesters stared at Vanessa as if she were possessed. Well maybe not _possessed,_ if that were the case she'd be taking a shower in holy water right now. Sam was the first to recover this time. "Uh, he seems to be doing well enough. Why should he be upset about the death of the Gecko brothers?"

Vanessa opened her mouth then snapped it shut and shook her head. "It doesn't matter, if he didn't mention it then I'm not gonna get into it. So, why the hell did Eddie send you to see me anyway?"

Though Sam was curious about Eddie's connection to the Gecko brothers he pushed that line of questioning aside, this meeting had gone far enough off the rails as it was. "He told us that some weird stuff has been happening to you and he thought that maybe we could help."

At the mention of "weird stuff" Vanessa's face underwent an odd transformation. Her eyes went wide but then she hid her shock with nonchalant laughter and waved them off. "Listen, I don't know what kind of stories that crazy old man is telling you but there's nothing _weird_ going on with me. Sorry to have wasted your time fellas. When you see Eddie again will you tell him to come visit? We have some arrangements we need to discuss." She smiled sweetly and sat back in her seat, waiting for their departure.

This woman's abrasive nature was starting to get under his skin but Sam couldn't help feeling an overwhelming sense of affection for her, she might not act anything like Jessica but she still had her face. "Vanessa _please._ Eddie wouldn't have sent us here unless he thought you needed our help. It's our job to help people that are experiencing......unnatural occurrences. Please, just tell us what's going on, let us do our job." There was a pleading edge to his voice though he didn't mean it to come out that way.

They sat in silence for a bit, Dean fidgeted impatiently in his seat while Vanessa stared the two of them down. Finally she expelled a breath and shook her head reticently. "Okay, fine. A few months ago I started having this dream....." His gut twisted with dread as she relayed her dream, it was all too familiar and painfully vivid for him. "Before it was just the dreams but then..........." Her eyes fell to the table and she trembled pitifully. "Then this started happening." Her teeth bared in a pained grimace as she carefully pulled up the sleeve of her white undershirt. Sam flinched when he saw the bright red hand print burned into her skin. She slid the sleeve higher to reveal at least three other burns, all in varying states of healing. Her bottom lip quivered and a tear slid down her cheek. "What the hell is happening to me?"

Sam looked over at his brother and Dean nodded, this was serious. He reached over to take her hand a bit more gently this time, trying to comfort her. "Hey Vanessa, it's going to be okay." More tears welled in her eyes as she looked up at him and he had to fight the urge to brush them away with his thumb as he would have done for Jess. "We're going to figure this out, I promise." She nodded and choked back another sob.

"Um.........Sam?" He realized that he was absentmindedly caressing Vanessa's hand, running circles over her soft skin with his thumbs. Sam quickly released her, he could feel his cheeks heating with embarrassment. Working this job was going to be so complicated in so many ways.

"Well!" Dean cut into the uncomfortable silence. "We're gonna go, do some research, make some calls, but we'll be back. In the meantime, how much salt can you get your hands on?"

\--

It was dark by the time they left the prison and they made their way back to the car under the glaring brightness of the parking lot's streetlights. Dean studied his brother out of the corner of his eye, Sam had stayed completely silent since they left Vanessa, he was lost in that big head of his. He knew the kid was shaken to the core but Dean wasn't sure what he could say to make his brother feel better so he just stayed close, simply offering his presence. After a short while the silence became too much for him. "So, either Vanessa is some kinda doppelganger or Jess had a sister that she didn't know about?" He could have kicked himself for just blurting out what was on his mind so insensitively but that was kind of his m.o. Speak first, think later.

A pained wince fleeted across Sam's face. "Jess was adopted Dean, it's possible that she could have dozens of siblings that she didn't know about."

"So that's not something you wanted to tell to her?"

Sam pursed his lips and shook his head ruefully. "Tell her what Dean? Hey, did you know you had a sister but, oh, she's dead now. The poor woman's going through enough as it is." His brother was right, Dean couldn't imagine life without Sam. If he ever lost his little brother it would ruin him.

"What are we thinkin'? Is this connected to Jess then? You don't suppose it's........"

"I think we need to give dad a call." Dean knew how hard it was for his brother to say those words but he had been thinking the same thing, he was relieved that Sam had been the one to bring it up though. He didn't want to get into another all out fight with his brother, not now when things were going so well between them. If there was one thing that could get Sammy's blood boiling it was the subject of their father.

Eddie was waiting back at the car for them, he leaned up against the hood, puffing away on a cigarette. "Hey boys, so whaddya think? Is it your kinda thing?"

"Oh yeah, it's _definitely_ our kinda thing." A slight breeze picked up, blowing smoke right into his face and Dean waved it away irritably. "I gotta say Eddie, she's pretty pissed that you haven't been to see her lately. You might wanna do that, and as soon as possible too. In my opinion the girl's in big trouble."

Eddie regarded them stoically, the light from the streetlamps made his blue eyes gleam unnaturally bright. "But you guys can save her right?"

Sam clasped the older man's shoulder and lowered his head to look him dead in the eye. "I promise we will do everything we can to save her." Poor Sammy and his goddamned bleeding heart. Dean nodded encouragingly but his stomach was twisted up with doubt. They weren't even sure what they were up against, and how could they protect her from this threat when she was locked away in prison? Steel bars and concrete walls might keep the Winchesters out but they certainly had no effect on ghosts......or things that were even worse.

Dean did his best to keep his despair hidden from his brother, besides all that he had other things on his mind. "Alright Eddie. We did what you asked and we talked to her, now it's time for you to hold up your end of the deal. Where's my car?"

Eddie sighed and nodded his head wearily. "There's a trucker bar, a little ways outside of Houston. Jacknife Jed's. You listen to me, get the Impala and get the hell outta there, the guys that run that place..............they're animals."


	5. Fade to Black

There she was looking all sleek and sexy, gleaming in the moonlight. " _Ohhhh,_ hellooo Baby." At least the bastards that had stolen her were keeping her in good shape, that car looked fan-freakin-tastic! Dean crept closer, keeping low to the ground with Sam following close behind. The back lot of Jacknife Jed's was fenced in to keep the general public out and there was a thick chain on the gate with a strong padlock to keep it in place. Luckily the Winchester's job frequently required the use of bolt cutters and they already had a pair in their cache of tools.

They sat crouched down behind a junky little pickup truck, searching for any kind of a lookout. Dean wasn't even sure if there was one, if what Eddie said was true about the guys running this place then most people were probably smart enough not to try and steal from them. "Alright Dean, it doesn't look like anyone's keeping watch. Let's go get your car back." They started to creep out from behind their cover when tires peeling across the gravel caught their attention and they crouched back down just before a set of headlights caught them out.

A sleek, late model Camaro came tearing up to the gate, followed by a classic GTO. If Dean wasn't so frustrated at the interruption he might have taken a moment to drool over the cars. The passenger side door opened on the GTO and a short hispanic man sporting a finely crafted ponytail jumped out to unlock the gate and throw it wide. The driver of the Camaro barely waited for the man to clear the gate before speeding through, the Pontiac followed behind a little more slowly.

Dean slid his back down the side of the pickup truck and sat in the dirt to wait. "Dammit. Looks like we're gonna have to settle in for a minute Sammy, why don't you take a seat." He patted the ground next to him. Sam came closer but instead of sitting down he hunched over, peeking through the windows of the pickup truck to see what the newly arrived group was doing. He was so close that his thigh pressed against Dean's cheek. He worried his bottom lip with his teeth and tried not to be obvious about staring up at his little brother.

Dean had a game he liked to play, sometimes he liked to see how close he could get to Sammy without weirding him out. He just had a thing for how his brother smelled and he would die before he admitted it to anyone. The other night they had been sitting on the couch watching tv, Sam got up to take a piss and before he got back Dean had moved to the middle of the couch with his arms spread out across the tops of the cushions. He had been expecting his brother to complain but Sam sat beside him without a word and slouched down on the couch, resting the back of his head against Dean's hand. They had ended up falling asleep like that, in the morning Dean had woken to an empty couch and a crick in his neck. Riding in the car was always the worst, he savored the closeness while the distance between them drove him absolutely mad.

Dean's eyes slid closed as he sat in the dirt with his cheek pressed against his brother, the warmth seeping through the fabric of Sam's jeans lulled him into a state of relaxation. A sudden scream ripped through the peace of the night, his eyes snapped open and he scrambled up from his seat to look about. Over in the fenced in lot a small group of men had emerged from the cars, in their midst was a dark man dressed all in black, from his leather duster to his cowboy hat. He held a woman by the back of her neck, her hands were bound and she struggled desperately against her captor. Another piercing shriek rent the night air as she fought to get away. A tall, impeccably groomed man wearing a suit and glasses rounded on the man in black. _"For fuck's sake Carlos, put her gag back in! I'm trying to run a respectable business here."_ The woman's captor, Carlos, bared his teeth in a grimace but quickly complied.

"Damn! Well, I never thought that when we started this search and rescue mission we'd be having to save _two_ damsels in distress." Dean looked at his brother but Sam's eyes were glued to the group of men.

"Dean, this is bad. I mean _really_ bad. You see those two guys in suits?" Dean squinted towards the yard and this time he noticed another man wearing a suit, he was the complete opposite of the man in glasses. Short and disheveled, he had a dark unkempt beard that ran along his jawline, his tie hung loosely about his neck and the top few buttons of his shirt were undone.

"Yeah what about 'em?"

"Dammit Dean! Don't you ever pay attention to the news? That bearded guy is Vanessa's ex-husband! Vanessa's supposedly _dead_ ex-husband. And the taller one is his brother."

\--

Seth didn't waste any time, the moment they got out of the car he made a beeline for the back entrance of Jacknife Jed's. Richie stared after him then turned back to Carlos. "Make sure Cris locks up then meet me down in my office. I'm going to go catch up with Seth."

Carlos smirked at him from beneath the brim of his black hat. "Right away.....boss. You know, I do not understand why you keep trying to force him into this role, your brother obviously does not care about running this business."

"Just shut the fuck up and do as you're told."

Carlos very wisely kept his mouth shut, he tipped his hat in mock respect and dragged the captive woman off with him to find Cris.

Richie stalked through the back entrance, he caught sight of Seth already halfway across the room and hurried to catch up. The loading dock at Jacknife Jed's was bustling with activity this evening, he usually found the swell of productivity to be pleasing but he was too irritated with his brother to enjoy it. The Gecko brothers were no longer petty thieves, they now ran a highly illegal, extremely lucrative business. They took in shipments, loads of tribute all collected for their bosses, the culebra Lords. The tribute got divvied up and shipped back out, each Lord got a cut. Basically they were bagmen and bookkeepers.

Seth stood waiting on the cargo elevator at the back of the room and Richie caught up to him just as the doors slid open. He slipped through the doors then shouldered his brother out of the way and stabbed at the button for B8 before Seth could choose a floor. His brother slunk to the far side of the elevator and lounged against the wall. "What are you babysittin' me now?"

Richie delved into his breast pocket to retrieve his pack of cigarettes. Tapping one loose he lit the end and filled his lungs. "Well if you weren't acting so fucking childish I wouldn't need to." His words came out in a cloud of smoke. "You're lucky I'm keeping an eye on you myself and not assigning the job to someone else."

Seth scoffed and shook his head ruefully. "You forget, I'm the boss too brother. I could just send them away."

He blew a smoke ring over at Seth but it dissolved disappointingly before it could make it all the way across. "You could try but they're more scared of me."

"Yeah, well they should be." Seth pushed off the wall and wandered over but still kept his distance. He held out a hand and snapped his fingers, gesturing for the cigarette. Richie rolled his eyes and tore the smoke from his mouth, proffering it to his brother. "I hope this isn't gonna take too long, some of us still like to sleep at night Richard." They both knew he was full of shit about wanting to sleep, Seth was just itching for his next fix.

The elevator doors slid open and Seth stalked past and off down the dimly lit hallway without waiting on him. Richie puffed a fresh cigarette alight and snapped his lighter shut irritably before hurrying to catch up with his brother. "This is your own fault Seth, so stop whining. I can't believe you were dumb enough to o.d., you irresponsible prick."

Seth rounded on him angrily, the junkie haze that usually dulled his eyes was gone and they shone brightly with rage. "Next time how about you just let nature take it's course. I don't need you to save me from myself!" His brother's words hit him like a punch in the gut. Richie couldn't face this world alone, losing Kate had been absolutely devastating, losing his big brother would be the death of him.

Rage burned hot in his gut, twisting his stomach into knots and his animal instincts took over. Fangs slid down from the roof of his mouth, pushing past his human teeth and he felt his skin writhe as it transformed into a pattern of snake scales. He slammed Seth up against the wall, pressing his body up against him. His brother flinched as Richie scraped his fangs up his neck, his brother smelled like sweat and poison, it was an intriguing combination. _"Now you listen to me, you goddamn asshole,"_ he hissed vehemently in Seth's ear, _"you're lucky I took you to the fucking hospital when I found you. If it ever happens again the outcome will be much different, I swear."_ Richie stared him down for a minute, making sure the import of his statement sunk in. There was a time when his threat would have sent his brother into a fit of rage but that was the old Seth. The new Seth, junkie Seth, just nodded his defeat, the fire went out of his eyes and Richie was sad to see it go. These days all he got were glimpses of the person his brother used to be, it made his heart ache with loneliness.

When Richie had first been turned into a culebra his transformations came with some difficulty, shifting to and from his human form had taken a great deal of concentration and sometimes he'd even drop fang without meaning to. Now it was second nature for him and his fangs retreated back into his mouth without hardly a thought. Seth exhaled in relief, Richie's culebra form always made him uneasy. He released his brother and they continued on down the hall in silence.

The halls they traveled were eight floors below ground. Jacknife Jed's was more than just a honky tonk or their base of operations, it was an ancient Mayan pyramid. The entire structure was buried underground with the exception of the very top level, the bar. The higher floors were dressed up to appear more modern but the lowest level of the pyramid remained quite primitive. Bare stone made up the floors and walls, torches were set into the walls at regular intervals and they provided a dim, fitful light. Most people hated coming down to this floor, his brother especially, there was an eerie, ominous feeling to the place that set people on edge. Richie reveled in it, it suited him perfectly.

Sometimes when his loneliness became too much to bear he would wander these halls, taking comfort in the unearthly aura that this place possessed. Since Kate's death he found himself constantly searching. At first he didn't know what he was searching for but the more he wandered the more he realized that he was looking for her. Richie knew that she was lost to him forever but her death was still so unreal, he couldn't shake this feeling that she was waiting for him just out of sight. So he would wander, seeking out all of the dark spaces and neglected rooms in hopes that maybe she was there and he just hadn't found her yet. He knew what Seth would say if he told him what he was looking for, his brother would tell him he was crazy and he would probably be right.

They arrived at a set of massive stone doors, they stood against the walls, open to the chamber beyond. The room looked more suited for human sacrifice than for business but this was where the Gecko brothers did their work. Two massive wooden desks sat near the far end of the chamber, behind one desk was a simple brown leather armchair, behind the other sat a thronelike chair of blood red leather. The walls of the room were covered in friezes of ancient Mayan carvings depicting snakes and gods in various states of entanglement. Richie stared idly at the carvings as he wandered over to his desk, one in particular held his interest. It was a depiction of a god with the tail of a snake protruding from his wide open mouth, it made him chuckle every time he looked at that one.

Richie took his seat, lounging in the red leather. His brother paced the room, he was fidgeting uncontrollably, itching for his next fix. "Seth sit down, you're driving me crazy."

"Well it's not that far of a drive for you." Seth looked at him with a mischievous gleam in his eye. Richie felt his fangs twitch against the roof of his mouth and he thought about what it would be like to bite into his brother, maybe just rip his throat out. Even though it had been a couple of hours since the last time Seth shot up there was probably still enough heroin in his system to get Richie high. Richie didn't go for that shit.

Finally Carlos entered the chamber, dragging his captive behind him and Cris swaggered in after them. Cris and Carlos had worked together for many, many years and they were familiar with each other, maybe even friends. Richie liked Cris, he never said much, he did his job with impressive efficiency and the other guys respected him. He made a good left hand.

The woman that Carlos held was trying to put up a fight but he held onto her almost effortlessly. Richie rose from his seat and came to loom over her, he smiled down at her menacingly. "What did you think was going to happen Florinda? Did you really think you'd get away with that shit in my territory?" She stared daggers at him and growled some garbled words behind her gag. "Oh, you've got something to say?" He hooked a finger in the gag and yanked it down below her chin. Florinda grimaced at him hatefully and spat in his face.

"You and your brother are a disgrace, when the Lords-"

"The Lords have already spoken to me." He removed his glasses and plucked a corner of her shirt to polish the spit from them. "They have already passed their judgement on you and they've given me free reign to punish you however I choose." Her face went deathly white and he snickered delightedly. "What do you think Seth? What should we do with her?"

Seth stalked over to his desk and took a seat in the brown leather armchair. "Jesus Christ Richie, do whatever you want, just stop playin' with her and get it over with."

"For fuck's sake Seth, a little input now and then would be nice."

"Go fuck yourself, how's that for input?"

"Thank you Seth, that's very helpful." He turned his attention back to the matter at hand. "What about you Carlos? Maybe we should give her to your girlfriend, that bitch is always hungry." Florinda began quaking in Carlos' strong grip and Richie stared down at her sadistically. "I think-"

"LET HER GO ASSHOLE!"

Richie looked past Carlos in bewilderment at the two men standing in his doorway. They both held guns leveled in his direction, he was sure he had never seen these men before but there was something about that voice that tickled the back of his memory. He turned to look at Cris who was standing nearest the door. "What the fuck!? Is your security detail really that bad? I mean look at that guy!" He pointed at the taller of the two, Richie was a tall guy but that man would have towered over him. "He's a fucking giant! How the hell did they get past your guys?"

Cris just shrugged and shook his head. "Lo siento hefe, they must have come in right behind us."

Richie stared at him, nonplussed. "Well that's not much of an a-"

"Uh, hey boys, guys with guns over here." What was it about that gruff voice that seemed so familiar?

Florinda suddenly flung her head backwards, smashing into Carlos' nose. He reeled back, completely stunned, and she pulled free from his grasp, making a dash for the door. "HELP ME! Please help!" She ran screaming toward the two men, they parted to let her through but suddenly she lunged at one of them, making a grab for his gun. The tall guy was so surprised that she had so abruptly turned on him that she was able to overpower him easily. Richie cursed and leveled his gun at Florinda. He shot just as she was taking aim, the tall guy shoved her out of the path of his bullet just as she pulled her trigger.

Richie had only a moment to register the agonizing, searing pain burrowing into his forehead before everything went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Obviously I've got Metallica on my mind. Those boys are back with a vengeance!


	6. Who knew that a white picket fence would be the stuff of his dreams?

Richie shook his head in confusion. He was sitting at a kitchen table staring down at a cup of coffee that looked to be just to his liking. Who's kitchen was this? It seemed vaguely familiar. The table was old and careworn, though there were dings and scratches on it the wood gleamed with a clean polish. Wildflowers marched across the walls in a colorful spray, there were all types, lilacs and daisies, vibrant red poppies and delicate little bluebells, it was a very suburban wallpaper. The aroma wafting through the air was absolutely heavenly and his stomach growled it's loud intent.

"Goodness, you weren't kidding when you said you were starving. Go drag your brother out of bed, breakfast will be ready by the time you get back." Richie jumped up from his seat and spun about. Standing there at the stove was Kate. Though her back was turned he knew without a doubt that this was _his_ Kate. The muscles in his legs turned to water and he crashed to the floor, his knees hit the linoleum and that's where he stayed, paralyzed.

"Kate?" His voice sounded small and shaky.

She froze at the sound of her name then slowly, slowly turned around. Her green eyes went wide and her bottom lip trembled as she stared down at him. _"Richie."_ His voice was a whisper of a prayer upon her lips. Richie gazed up at her, drinking in a sight he never thought he'd see again. His eyes traced every contour of her face from the delicate slope of her nose, to the pink blush of her cherubic lips. Her eyes sparkled like the deep green of some tropical ocean, he wanted to drown himself in that ocean. She was just as he remembered except........his gaze drifted lower and he would have fallen over in shock if he hadn't already been kneeling on the floor. Kate's stomach was swollen and enormously pregnant.

"How?.........How are you.........Am I dreaming?"

Her lips curved in a small, sad smile. "Does this look like the sort of dream that Richard Gecko would have?"

Richie gazed into the deep green of Kate's eyes then down at the pregnant swell of her belly, his heart ached with love and despair. "Yes."

Her eyes welled up with tears and for a moment he feared that he had upset her in some way but then she was rushing across the kitchen to wrap him in an embrace. She placed a kiss atop his head and whispered into his hair. _"Well then, I guess you have your answer."_ Kate held his head tight against her belly, he had forgotten how silky and soft her skin was and he nuzzled his lips against her arm while she smoothed his hair.

"Well good morning my loves. Gettin' kinky on the kitchen floor without me I see." Richie craned his neck to peer over his shoulder at Seth. His brother stood in the doorway to the kitchen clad only in his boxers, his hair was disheveled and he still looked half asleep. He shuffled across the linoleum groggily and planted a kiss on top of Richie's head before ruffling his hair. Then he leaned in over Kate's belly to give her a kiss too before shuffling on over to the coffee pot. Richie peered around Kate, studying his brother. Seth looked.......good. There was a healthy glow to his skin and his body was deliciously toned and fit, he looked like he used to, back before he started doing heroin. Back before Kate died.

"Are you planning on staying down there all day or do you want some breakfast?" Kate peered down at him. Seth wandered back over with a cup of black coffee in hand, he wrapped an arm around her and kissed the side of her neck.

"Oh I'll take some breakfast baby girl, and if Richie won't get up off the floor than I'll eat his too. I'm starvin'." It felt so good to see his brother looking and acting like himself again............but this was a dream and the real Seth was.......

"Seth!" Richie scrambled up from the floor in a panic. "I need to wake up!" He could feel his heart breaking in his chest as he said the words. "Seth is in trouble, he _needs_ me!"

"You could....." Kate stopped mid-sentence and shook her head. "No. You're right, you need to go help your brother." Tears slid down her cheeks, dripping from her chin. "Goodbye Richie, just remember that....I love you."

He cupped her face, caressing her cheeks with his thumbs as he savored every last second with her. Leaning down he pressed a reverent kiss to her lips and it felt more real to him than anything in his waking life.


	7. A Tense Introduction

Watching Richie go down with a bullet to the brain was both horrific and extremely satisfying. Seth felt a sickening wave of guilt twist his stomach, or maybe it was withdrawal, his veins were screaming for another hit of herion. Everything had gone sideways in less than a minute and now that his brother was down it looked like he was going to have to take over this shitstorm of a situation. He had no idea where these two assholes had come from but they had made a huge fucking mess of things.

"Sam, you okay?" The shorter, gruffer looking man peered over at his partner.

Sam clutched his arm, trying to staunch the flow of blood from the bullet that should have found it's way to Florinda's heart. "Yeah, I'm fine Dean." He took his hand from his arm and grabbed at Florinda as she tried to shove past him to make her escape. "Just hold on, you'll never make it out of here on your own. Let us help you!"

Florinda turned on the man and her sweet little face suddenly contorted into something monstrous and snake-like as she bared her fangs at him. "Thanks sweetheart, but I think you've done enough." She laughed and shoved him backward into his partner so hard that the two went crashing to the floor in a tangled heap then she dashed down the hallway. Cris took a running leap over the men and darted after her. He and Carlos had been tracking Florinda for months and he wasn't about to let her get away that easily.

Carlos started to go after them but the two men had already risen to their feet and were effectively blocking the door so he pulled out his pistol and kept it trained on them. Now that he got a good look at them Seth was surprised to see that they were fairly young. He wasn't even sure that the taller one, Sam, was old enough to drink. _Jesus Christ he's just a kid!_ Dean stood in front of the young man protectively, he held his gun aimed at Carlos.

These guys obviously had no idea what they had gotten themselves into, he needed to stop this before Carlos wasted them both. "Well congratulations fellas, you've just rescued a bloodsuckin' child murderer. Should be real proud of yourselves."

Sam's eyebrows rose and he stared in puzzlement at Seth. "Wait, you guys are _hunters?_ I thought the Gecko brothers were murderous criminals, why on earth would you even bother with hunting?"

His heart sank in his chest, the Gecko brothers were supposed to be dead. Now these two were going to have to die to keep their secret. Seth pulled his revolver from his waistband and tried to hold it steady but the shakes had really begun to take hold and a telltale tremor ran through his arm. "I really wish that you hadn't just said that."

"What? The thing about you being hunters?" The poor kid looked utterly confused.

"No, the thing about us bein' the Gecko brothers." Seth pulled back the hammer on his gun. "How'd you know where to find us?"

Dean smiled disarmingly all the while keeping his gun leveled at Carlos, with the way Seth's hand was shaking he was obviously less of a threat. "Hey, hey, whoa! We just came here to get our car back alright? Then we heard that screaming, honestly if we had known that chick was a monster we woulda just left you to it!" Seth shook his head in disbelief, these two had broken into their operation for a _car_ and a woman they didn't even know? "Eddie told us where we could find the Impala in exchange for us helping Vanessa, he never mentioned anything about you guys." Hearing Vanessa's name came as something of a shock. Eddie visited her in prison regularly and Seth would ask after her from time to time but he had never heard mention that she was in trouble. This whole situation was getting more fucked by the minute.

"Now I remember you!" A chill went running up his spine at the sound of Richie's voice, this wasn't the first time he had seen his brother's unnatural recovery from death but it still disturbed him deeply. "The last time I saw you you were eating dust in the rearview mirror of the Impala back in Mexico." Richie adjusted his glasses as he slowly rose to his feet then spent a moment meticulously straightening out his suit and smoothing his hair back. Once he was satisfied that everything was perfectly in place he turned to regard the men standing in the doorway with a cool eye and a maniac smile. "I gotta say, I'm impressed that you were able to track us down but you obviously didn't do your homework before busting in here, guns blazing. You should've just taken the car and gotten the fuck out of here." His voice grew dangerously quiet as he drew his pistol. "Do you know how much trouble I went through to kill off the Gecko brothers? I can't have you running to the cops to give us up the second you leave here."

"Whoa, hold on Richie." His brother tensed and Seth was certain he was about to gun these men down before he got a chance to question them. _"Richie please._ Let's just hear them out, alright?" Richie sighed and lowered his gun, Carlos still held his pistol aimed at the men but he wouldn't shoot without a command, he certainly was an obedient little shit. "What kinda trouble is Vanessa in? And why would Eddie come to you guys for help instead of us, what the fuck can you do for her?"

Sam stepped out from behind Dean's protection, he looked dangerously pale and he was a bit unsteady on his feet. Though he held tight to the bullet wound in his arm blood flowed freely through his fingers, Seth worried that the kid might not last too much longer without stitches. "My brother and I, we hunt........supernatural things." His eyes darted toward Richie but he continued on without mention of his resurrection. "Something's after Vanessa, something really dangerous. My brother and I are going to stop it."

\--

The moment they returned to their apartment Richie made a beeline for the couch and flopped down onto the plush cushions, completely exhausted. He may have been safe from sunlight three floors below Jacknife Jed's but he wasn't unaffected, he could feel the daytime lethargy beginning to settle in his bones.

They finally had the Winchesters squared away in one of the "guest rooms". Those rooms were reserved for certain types of guests, the kind that weren't necessarily here of their own free will but weren't in deep enough shit to be kept locked up in the cells deep below. The boys would be comfortable enough but they had been confined to their room and the guards placed outside their door were under strict orders to allow no one in without one of the Gecko brothers present.

Richie glanced down at his phone, no texts, no calls, nothing. Cursing his bad luck he tossed the phone on the coffee table and tried not to let his nerves get the better of him. Cris still hadn't returned from his pursuit of Florinda. They had spent months tracking the woman as she ran rampant through his territory, killing young children and sometimes whole families. If he didn't get her back immediately he would have to tell the Lords of his failure, it would cast doubt on his ability to rule his territory properly. He had sent Carlos to put together a posse to track her down, hopefully Cris had a bead on her. Hopefully Cris was still alive.

Though he desperately wanted his bed there was still one more thing to attend to. If he didn't do this now he knew he wouldn't get another chance.

Seth paced back and forth across the living room, muttering to himself, he was obviously distressed over the news of Vanessa. Richie took his ease on the couch as he watched his brother wander over to their small bar and pour himself a drink, the neck of the bottle clamored against the rim of his glass, his hands were shaking uncontrollably. He downed his first drink then poured himself another and tossed that one back too. Seth was longing for his needle but there was something that he wanted from his little brother, it was powerful enough to keep him from slinking back to his room to shoot up. Richie knew where this was heading but it wasn't going to work unless Seth was the one to bring it up so he stayed silent and settled in to wait.

Seth completed his second circuit of the living room before finally coming to a stop in front of him, he cocked his head and stared down at Richie with tired brown eyes. "Do you believe those guys, about Vanessa? I mean, do you think she's really in trouble?"

Poor Seth, he looked so bone weary. He wanted to soothe his big brother, pull him close and wrap him in his arms, rain kisses down onto his forehead and tell him that everything would turn out just fine. That would have proved to be disastrous right then so he kept his seat patiently. "I suppose she is. I don't think Eddie would have brought them to help her if she wasn't."

"Well......do you think they can really help her?"

"You saw all that shit they had packed in the trunk of the Impala, these guys mean serious business. I bet they can."

Seth sighed and sipped at his whisky, he stared down into his glass, keeping his eyes averted from Richie's. "If they can get close enough."

"Yeah, they did say it was going to be a challenge, trying to keep her safe from that, _ghost or whatever_ while she was locked up." Richie waited, he had been planning this out since the moment the Winchesters had mentioned Vanessa. Though Seth wasn't _in_ love with the woman he still had love for her in his heart. Guilt over her imprisonment was something that tore at his brother every day.

"Richie...." Seth inched closer until their legs were touching, Richie could smell sweat rolling from his pores and underneath that, the noxious scent of his blood. "Please Richie I need you..........I need you to make a plan to break her out." _Bingo!_

Richie scoffed and moved away from his brother, leaning back to lounge against the couch cushions. "I don't know Seth. I already put my ass on the line to break you out of prison and I did that because I love you." He reached into his breast pocket to dig out a pack of smokes then lit a cigarette and puffed at it leisurely, stretching his moment of faux contemplation. "Why the fuck would I risk my neck for a woman that I don't even like?" Richie feigned a coughing fit and covered his mouth to hide a smirk. If Seth realized that he was toying with him this would all fall apart fast. "Besides, _Vanessa_ is the one that helped me do recon for that prison break. _If_ I do this I can't do it solo."

"Richie, you wouldn't be doing it alone! I'd be workin' the job with you."

Richie burst into a fit of laughter. "You! You're going to help me break Vanessa out!?" He sucked at the cigarette between his lips and expelled a cloud of smoke as he chortled. "Your brain is more fried than I thought if you think for one minute that I'm gonna let your junkie ass pull _any_ kind of job with me, much less a prison break."

"Richie please, it's my fault that she got locked up! If Vanessa's in danger then you've gotta help me get her outta there!" There was a desperate edge to his voice and he looked absolutely pitiful. He'd had enough, he was ready.

Richie took another long drag of his cigarette and blew streamers of smoke from his nostrils. "Okay."

Seth's eyebrows slowly climbed upward as he stood there, waiting for more but Richie kept silent. "Okay? Okay you're gonna help me get her out........just like that?"

"No, not _just like that_ Seth. I need you to do something for me first."

His big brother gave him a weary look, his eyes narrowed and Richie almost laughed at how completely clueless Seth was in that moment. "What do you need me to do?"

"You need to quit using. Right now. I won't do it otherwise."

Seth turned from him abruptly and began pacing back and forth across the room again. _"Shhhit. Shit. Shit. Shit."_ He pounded his fist against his leg and shook his head as if he were arguing with himself. Slowly he turned back to Richie and nodded. "Alright........I'll quit. But I can't do it alone."

Richie rose smoothly from his seat and crossed the living room to stand before his brother. He reached out a tentative hand and grasped the back of Seth's neck, pulling him forward so that his brother's forehead rested against his own. "You never have to be alone, I'm always here for you Seth."

Seth's eyes slid closed and he reached up to place a shaking hand on the back of Richie's neck, his brother's palm was feverishly hot and clammy against his skin but he reveled in his touch. " _Oh god......Richie_." Seth whispered his name with such longing it made his heart ache.

They stood holding one another as the moments ticked by. Richie knew it was a mistake but he couldn't help himself, he leaned in slowly and pressed his lips to his brother's. Seth melted against him, his hands ran up the back of Richie's neck to tangle in his hair and the kiss soon became something much more passionate as they made up for months of separation. Richie clung to his big brother, pulling him tight against his body, with their chests pressed together he could feel Seth's heartbeat pounding out a counter rhythm against his own. It was too much too soon. Suddenly Seth pulled back and he shoved Richie away from him. He stood staring at the floor with his chest heaving as if he had just run a mile.

"I'll take your help and I'll quit using........but this changes _nothing_ between us." He spat the words vehemently and slunk away with his head hanging down.


	8. A much needed shower.

Richie woke surrounded by his brother's heavy scent. He stretched luxuriously and reached out, half expecting to find Seth laying next to him but his hand fell on empty blankets. Looking at the clock sitting on the nightstand he was surprised to find that it had only been a few hours, it felt like he had been asleep for ages. He burrowed his face into the pillows and considered sliding back into a peaceful slumber but instead dragged himself from beneath the covers.

His boxers slid low on his hips as he stood and stretched, for a moment he considered donning the suit he had left folded at the end of the bed but didn't bother with it. Richie padded his way across his brother's bedroom, his bare feet moving silently over the hardwood floor. Their apartment was a small pocket of modernity inside a buried pyramid that was centuries old, the painted drywall, carpets and hardwood floors covered over ancient stone. When they had taken over Jacknife Jed's months ago Richie hired a slew of contractors to renovate their apartment so it had more of a homelike feel, he had done it to make Seth more comfortable though his brother had never really appreciated the gesture. He had tried to make Seth's room a replicate of previous bedrooms that he had had over the years. Most of Seth's old furniture from had been moved in, all massive pieces made of darkly stained wood and rich leather, he had even had the walls painted the same deep shade of red that his brother was so fond of. Artwork hung on the walls, all neatly framed charcoal sketches that Richie had done with his own hand and gifted to Seth. A lot of them were older drawings that he had done for his brother over the years, all of different subject matter, some of them were weapons or cars that his brother was particularly fond of, some of them were of people, there were even a few of Seth himself. Recently there were quite a number of new additions to the framed pieces, all of one person, Richie hurried past them without lifting his eyes. When his brother had begun requesting these newer sketches it had been a sadistic test of his emotional endurance to complete each drawing, he couldn't bare to look at them once they were finished.

Richie stood in front of the bathroom door, listening. Complete silence met his ears, he panicked and he flung the door wide. Seth sat tied to a chair in the large glass enclosure of his shower stall, his head hung back and he wasn't moving. Richie rushed across the bathroom to kneel at his brother's side, he raised a trembling hand to Seth's neck and sighed in relief when he felt the strong beat of his pulse against his fingertips. Seth groaned at his touch, his head lolled to the side and he began snoring loudly.

Richie rose from the floor and shook his head in dismay as he stared down at his big brother. Seth's face was pale and drawn, sweat soaked his hair and plastered his shirt against his body. Vomit crusted the corner of his mouth, trailing through his dark beard and down the front of his chest in a dried up mess. When they were younger he had viewed his big brother as some sort of superhero, unflappable and invincible no matter how many times their father had tried to break him. As they grew older it became apparent that Seth was just as flawed and mortal as any other man but he was still Richie's hero. While other people shied away from his wild eyes and his eccentric ticks Seth had always just taken it in stride, accepting him wholly for who he was. Richie had done some pretty deranged things in his madness but no matter how bad things got, no matter how far off the rails he went his brother was always there with a devoted smile and a steadying hand to get him back on track. Seth was a solid presence in a world that seemed as insubstantial and mercurial as a dream to Richie. Except he wasn't any of those things now.

All it had taken was the death of one young girl to bring the Gecko brothers to their knees.

Richie curled his nose at the noxious odor that wafted from his brother, he was ripe to say the least. Beneath the sharp musk of stale sweat and the stink of vomit was the pungent odor of urine. He regretted not having stripped his brother down before restraining him but at the time that hadn't been an option. Before Richie tied him up Seth had been lashing out so violently he was afraid that his brother was going to hurt himself. "Oh Seth, you are absolutely disgusting." He slid a gentle hand through the damp mess of his hair fondly, brushing it back from his forehead. Seth snorted sharply and his eyelids fluttered open.

"Richie........what the fuck?" His voice was scratchy and raw. "Let me up outta this chair."

"I don't know if I can do that."

"Just let me up already." Seth whined. "Why are you doin' this to me?" It made Richie cringe to see his brother behaving so wretchedly.

"I'm doing this because I love you Seth."

His brother glared up at him with glassy eyes and bared his teeth. "I _hate_ you."

"You don't."

"I do. I hate your fuckin' guts." Seth strained against the ropes holding him down, trying to break free. "When I saw you go down with that shot to the head it felt so good I practically got off. I wish you woulda just stayed dead." His words cut to the bone. Richie backed away from him and walked over to the faucet handle to turn the water on.

Seth coughed and spluttered as cold water rained down on him from the showerhead. Richie let him sit under the cold stream for a minute or two, after Seth started shivering violently he finally turned on the hot water. He watched as the vomit slowly dislodged from his brother's beard and went swirling down the drain but there were still some stubborn spots that wouldn't come off. Richie sighed and slipped out of his boxers, tossing them to the floor outside the shower stall then he removed his superfluous glasses and set them carefully on a ledge before walking beneath the stream of water. Seth looked up at his naked form and let go an inhuman growl.

"For fuck's sake Seth, I'm not going to _do_ anything to you. You're fucking filthy, we need to get you cleaned up." He balked when Richie reached for him. "Look, hate me all you want but you're the one that asked me for help. So let me help you." Seth said nothing, just nodded his acceptance and settled in his seat as Richie untied him. He tried to stand but his legs wobbled treacherously, Richie caught him just before he went crashing to the tiled floor and sat him back gently in the chair.

The first thing to go was the vomit crusted shirt, he quickly undid the row of buttons, his fingers moving by rote. Once he had the dress shirt peeled off Richie leaned down to grasp the bottom of Seth's undershirt. Unbidden images of the last time he had undressed his brother flooded his memory, Seth bucking up against him as he tore at his clothes impatiently. The heat of the memory was so overwhelming that Richie had to fight the urge to bury his face against Seth's neck as he pulled the shirt over his head. His eyes went wide with shock when he spied the secret his brother kept concealed beneath his shirt.

Richie knelt on the floor before his brother, completely transfixed. He reached out a trembling finger to reverently stroke the tiny gold cross resting against Seth's chest. Such a small thing, it hung from a thin, delicate chain, meant for a woman's neck. Seth had attached another chain to the first so that it would remain hidden under his shirt, close to his heart. Richie saw red as the blood of his tears mingled with the water pouring down from above and went running down his face. "You........you've kept it all this time?"

Seth stared down at the cross wistfully. "Yeah, I found it on the bathroom counter after she........" He made a sound in his throat and Richie realized that his brother was crying too. "I shoulda buried her with it but I just couldn't let go."

Richie finished stripping his brother down and helped him wash in somber silence. By the time they finished with the shower Seth was able to stand but Richie still had to help him back to his bed. He fell onto the soft mattress and settled into the pillows with a grateful sigh. Richie stared down at his brother as he contemplated going back to his own room.

When Richie crawled into bed and slid beneath the covers Seth said nothing. Though they were both completely naked his brother let him press his body against his back and didn't try to pull away when Richie looped an arm around him to rest his hand against his chest. Seth seemed content to let him stay, though it was more likely that his brother was too exhausted to push him away. Either way Richie was grateful for the closeness.

Early in the evening Richie woke to an empty bed. As he made his way back to his own room to get dressed he found Seth passed out on their couch, still naked and drooling all over the dark leather cushions. He sighed wearily and retrieved the comforter from his brother's bed to cover him up. It seemed that their moment of closeness was at an end.


	9. Hostile Hospitality

"Oh come on Dean! He was right in front of you, how could you miss that shot?!"

Dean looked down at Sam from his seat on the edge of the mattress, his brother sat on the floor with a video game controller in hand, his back up against the bed and his long legs stretched out in front of him. "This is nothin' like shootin' stuff in real life! Besides, I think my controller's messed up."

Sam tore his attention from their game and cocked a dubious eyebrow at him. "You've already made me switch with you twice, I think the problem is user error, not the controller."

Dean rolled his eyes and tossed the controller to the bed then flopped back on the mattress. It had been four days since they had been locked up in this room and he was going stir crazy. This certainly wasn't the worst imprisonment he'd had to endure in his life, usually being held hostage involved chains, ropes, and torture, definitely not soft beds, video games and room service. "I don't wanna play anymore, this game is so lame."

He felt the mattress dip as his brother crawled up on the bed and lay on his stomach next to him. Sam had his chin cradled in his hand and he stared down at Dean, grinning. "You are such a sore looser! You're just jealous that I'm better at video games than you." A dark strand of hair slid down, obscuring his eyes and Dean resisted the urge to reach up and brush it back. The bottom of Dean's shirt had ridden up and Sam was so close that his bare skin pressed hot against his side. Sam had taken to roaming about their room shirtless for the past few days. He said it was a pain in the ass to put on and remove his shirt every time he needed to change the bandages covering his bullet wound stitches. Dean's unease with his brother's bareness wasn't something that he could admit to so he silently endured and tried not to stare.

"Yeah well, you might be a better shot when it comes to video games but _I'm_ the better shot in _real life_." Dean grinned up at him cockily, his brother knew it was the truth but he'd never outright admit it.

Sam scoffed and flashed his perfect teeth in a gorgeous smile. "Well.......if you don't want to play video games anymore then what do you want to do?" His brother nudged him with an elbow and his smile became something more of a secretive smirk. Dean chewed his bottom lip in contemplation as he stared up at Sam, was there something suggestive in the way he had asked that question? He desperately needed to get out of this room if he was starting to think that his little brother was hitting on him.

There was a sudden knock at the door and Dean sat straight up, his heart was pounding as if he had just been caught doing something very, very bad. His eyes went wide when he heard Sam let go a particularly nasty curse under his breath but when he looked back over his shoulder his brother was slowly sitting up too. "Yeah, come in." Sam sounded a little bit annoyed.

When Bobby stepped in the door Dean thought his heart was going to hammer it's way out of his chest and he leapt up off the bed. He then tried to hide his guilt by coming across the room to give the old man a particularly awkward hug. Bobby shoved him off and scowled. "Get offa me, what's the matter with you son? Look, I'm happy to see you too but there's no call for all that."

Dean's face colored and he stared down at the floor. "Sorry Bobby, I'm just really happy to see you is all." He shrugged his shoulders sheepishly. Ever since he got Sam back from college he had been acting a damn fool. Dean tried to think back to when his feelings for his brother had become something more, something that he felt so damn shameful about but he couldn't put his finger on one distinct moment. It seemed that lately his brother seemed to be responding to him in ways that had his mind all twisted up and it wasn't really something that he could talk to him about. If Sam ever found out the things he had been thinking about him he'd loose his brother for good.

"Oh leave him alone Bobby," Sam came striding across the room to shake Bobby's hand and give him a fond pat on the back. Bobby gave Dean a look as if to say, _This is how a man greets another man._ "We've been cooped up in this room for days, we're both going a little crazy." He was relieved to see that Sam had finally put on a shirt.

Dean peered out into the hallway, he saw a couple of guards, there were always two at the door. A little further away, just out of earshot, he saw Eddie, he was having a conversation with Richard Gecko. Actually it looked more like he was lecturing the younger man, Eddie's voice was a wordless rumbling as he stabbed a finger into Richie's chest and reamed him out. The younger Gecko brother looked uncharacteristically humble as he slouched with his back against the wall with a cigarette drooping from the corner of his mouth. Richard dragged his eyes up from the floor to look at Eddie then shot a grimace over the older man's shoulder when he saw Dean watching. Dean gave him a shit-eating grin and waved contentiously from the doorway. Richard raised his chin arrogantly to stare down his nose at Dean and flipped him off. Eddie broke off from his tirade to peer back over his shoulder and gave Dean a quick wave then turned attention back to upbraiding Richard, gesturing emphatically with his hands as the rumble of his voice grew even louder.

"What're you doin' out there Dean? Get in here, I've got some stuff I need to talk to ya about." Bobby had already settled himself at the edge of Sam's bed and his brother sat on his own mattress, Dean figured the least awkward option would be to stand. Bobby looked from one to the other of them seriously. "Now listen boys, I've gotta tell ya somethin' and you're not gonna like it."

"Does it have anything to do with you fraternizing with the enemy? I mean, come on Bobby!" Dean crossed his arms over his chest angrily, it seemed that Bobby was in on this whole thing and it wasn't sitting well with him. "Did you know that Richard Gecko was a.....a..."

"Culebra?" Bobby finished for him. "Yeah, I knew all about that. You guys were just supposed to snag the car and get the hell outta dodge, not hang around!"

Sam sat forward in his seat and stared at Bobby indignantly. "Why, so that we wouldn't know that this place is crawling with monsters? What the hell is going on, why haven't we heard of culebras before? There's no mention of them in dad's journal."

"It's because hunters don't go after culebras boy, that's just the rules. These guys ain't like the kinda vampires that you guys are used to, they don't hang around in little nests."

" _Little_ nests! Bobby, the last nest that we found had no less than forty vampires!"

"Yeah well, these guys have an entire society of their own, we're talkin' about a population to rival all the monsters that you've been fightin' combined. Culebras have been around a long time, arguably longer than any of the European breed of vampire."

Dean scoffed and shook his head. "So because they've got numbers we're supposed to just let them do whatever they want? Kill freely?"

"Well they don't just do whatever they want, most of the time, and usually when someone gets outta hand they handle it among themselves. Like that thing you boys managed to make a mess of the other night. There was a time that we did hunt culebras, centuries ago we tried to take 'em all out. The thing is, it was the _hunters_ that damn near went extinct. Since then we've had a kind of unspoken pact with them, they leave us alone, we leave them alone and they handle their own business." The way he said it so matter of factly, like it was just the natural order of things, twisted Dean's stomach in sickening knots.

Dean sat down heavily next to Sam, he felt like his whole world had been turned upside down. An entire race of supernatural creatures was living right under their noses and they were supposed to just let them be? Sam put a steadying hand on his shoulder and he welcomed the comfort. "So we just turn tail and run?"

"Not exactly. You boys still got a job to do." Bobby stared at the floor, avoiding their gaze.

Sam's grip on Dean's shoulder tightened painfully. "Well of course we're going to do the job Bobby! We wouldn't just leave Vanessa to her fate!"

"Of course you won't." The cold arrogance of that voice combined with the scent of cigarette smoke twisted Dean's face into a grimace, he looked over his shoulder to stare murder Richard Gecko. The vexatious man leaned casually against the door frame, puffing away on a cigarette, he returned Dean's look with a malicious smile. "Hello Winchesters. I came to extend my hospitality to the both of you. You will be staying here until the job is done."

Dean rose from his seat and strode across the room to face the man down. "Thanks, but I think we've had enough of your _hospitality._ "

Richard snickered, he took a long, languorous drag of his cigarette and blew an enormous smoke ring right in Deans face, sending him into a coughing fit. "Nevertheless, you're staying here until you've helped my brother's ex. You don't have to stay locked up in your room but I suggest you don't try to leaving Jacknife Jed's on your own. After Vanessa's safe and sound the two of you can be on your way. I'll even let you have your car back, since I'm such a nice guy."

Dean had enough, he squared his shoulders and drew his fist back but Sam grabbed his arm before he could swing. "Whoa, hold on Dean! We can do this, alright? We're going to do the job anyway and it's not like we couldn't use the help."

His brother was right. Dean backed down though he was still itching for a fight. "Well, what the hell ever. I guess it beats holin' up in some run down motel."

Richard smirked at him, he took one last puff of his cigarette then flicked the butt on the floor of the Winchester's room. "Now, about Vanessa. Eddie tells me that her imprisonment is going to be an obstacle to keeping her safe so we're going to have to break her out." He laughed at the astonished looks that Sam and Dean gave him. "Don't worry boys, I'm working on a plan and you're going to help me."


	10. I ain't my brother's keeper, but you can be mine.

Jacknife Jed's was packed this evening. Seth sat at the bar sipping an Old Fashioned as he surveyed the crowd with mild pleasure. It wasn't what he had wanted but it was his business, well, his and Richie's. Maybe he was a little proud of the bustling trade they were doing, even if it wasn't their most lucrative source of income. The house band, Chingon, was wailing up on stage and people danced with wild abandon all throughout the bar. His fingers absently tapped out a rhythm on the side of his glass, the combination of hard rock and mariachi was undeniably compelling.

As his eyes drifted through the throng they kept wandering back to one table in particular. Sam Winchester sat by himself with his back to the wall and a bottle of beer in his hand. The kid lounged in his chair, apparently taking his ease, but Seth could see he was wound up tight. His eyes shifted constantly as if he were expecting an attack from all sides and he'd been nursing the same beer since Seth had sat down at the bar over half an hour ago. Seth broke his stare and gazed down at the drink in his hand, swirling the liquor around the glass.

Tonight was the first time he had felt well enough to leave the apartment he shared with Richie so he had donned his suit, ran a comb through his hair and emerged from his room looking like Seth Gecko ought to look. Well, not completely. Running a hand over the thick scrub of beard along his chin he shook his head dolefully. How had he let this shit get so overgrown? Well, for one thing his hands weren't the most steady, even now, and he was pretty sure his electric clippers were in his brother's bathroom where he was loathe to venture. So the beard stayed, for now.

Sam tipped his head back to swill the rest of his beer and when he leaned over to set the bottle back upon the table a thick lock of shaggy hair slid down across his face. Seth's fingers twitched as he watched him brush the hair from his eyes and he started as he realized that he was staring at the kid again. This time Sam noticed too and his face scrunched up in a scowl. Not to be discouraged Seth raised his glass in a chummy manner and gave the kid a cocksure grin which earned him an exasperated eye roll. Chuckling, he turned his attention back to his drink and gulped down the last watery dregs then signaled the bartender for another.

A cute blonde waitress strutted by, she wore a tight mini skirt and an equally snug, corsetted top. He nibbled at his bottom lip as he stared, she had a nice little wiggle to her walk. Seth shook his head and swore at himself for looking, he'd been back on his feet for less than a week and already his cock was trying to do his thinking for him. He'd as soon sleep with a real snake before slithering into bed with Alice. She sauntered over to Sam's table and leaned down to speak to him, providing him with a spectacular view of her impressive swell of cleavage. Sam cast his eyes to the tabletop shyly and handed her his empty beer bottle. Alice's mouth curled up in a wolfish grin and she leaned in closer to speak in his ear, her breasts practically resting on his shoulder. Whatever she said sent a crimson flush creeping from Sam's collar to his hairline and he shook his head. She ran a red lacquered fingernail along his jawline down to his chin and tipped his face up gently. His adam's apple bobbed as he stared into her eyes just inches from his own, she smiled at him coaxingly as she spoke but again he shook his head. Alice released him with a wink and ruffled his hair before sauntering away. Seth was impressed, to say the least, he had never seen a man that was able to turn Alice away. The woman had a voracious appetite and she never went hungry.

As Alice walked past Seth held up a hand to catch her attention, she smiled warmly and traipsed over to lean an elbow against the back of the bar stool next to his. "Hey Alice, you know the house rules, no eatin' the boss' guests." He smiled charmingly to take the sting out of his words like he might be joking. He really wasn't.

She grinned at him coyly. "I know the rules. My interest in that boy has nothing to do with _that_ appetite."

"Oh! So you're just lookin' to get laid?"

Squaring her shoulders she pursed her lips and huffed. "I might dress like this to get better tips but I don't give the goodies away to just any fucking body," Alice gave a little wiggle to emphasize the "goodies" she was speaking of, "I have standards you know! Have you seen the usual selection of guys in this place?"

"So what am I some kind of fucking C.H.U.D.?" Seth chuckled, feigning insult.

Alice's smile became something much darker and her eyes narrowed. "Oh, I know all about you and your.....prejudices." _Prejudices?_ What was wrong with wanting to keep the blood _inside_ his body? "And your brother, the way I hear it he likes to play really rough, or not at all. I might like to get kinky every now and again but the stuff he's into.......well I just don't go for that shit." Seth had heard about the shit Richie was into, rumor was that bedding his brother often ended in blood and ashes. It was something that he really didn't want to contemplate.

"Hey Alice, what did you say to him anyway?" He nodded his head toward Sam's table.

"Not that it's any of your fucking business, but I told him that I get off around two and since his brother isn't here I could keep him company." Biting her lip she looked over her shoulder at him then back at Seth, her eyes bright with mischief. "I love a man that's big enough to throw me around." Seth shook his head to clear it, he didn't need that image of Alice running through his mind. "He's a bit shy though, doesn't seem too keen." She frowned in disappointment as she set Sam's empty bottle on the bartop, the bartender promptly handed her another beer and she turned to go.

"Wait, is that for the kid?" Alice turned back to him and nodded. "Give it to me, I'll take it to him." The words just spilled out and before he even realized what he was doing he had risen from his seat.

Alice handed him the bottle with a wry grin. "You better be careful."

The look of knowing on her face rubbed him the wrong way but he gave her an innocent smile to hide his irritation. "I'm just gonna have a drink with the man, what're you so worried about?" She cocked a dubious eyebrow at him but just shook her head and wandered off to another one of her tables. When the heavyset man sitting closest to Alice locked eyes on her ample chest hungrily Seth saw a spark light in her eyes and he knew that he wouldn't be seeing that man in his bar again. He snatched his drink from the bar and made his way over to Sam's table. The kid shot him a dirty look as he approached.

"What do you want Seth?"

He ignored Sam's hostile sneer and smiled charmingly. "Just the pleasure of your company." Sam rolled his eyes in exasperation and Seth took a sip of his drink to hide a smirk. "Hey, c'mon kid, loosen up, here's your beer. I don't know why you're suckin' down that swill when you're drinkin' on the house."

"Uh, thanks." He took the beer apprehensively but didn't drink. There was something about his haughty attitude that just set off the mischief in Seth. He took the seat across from Sam without asking which earned him another dirty look but he didn't mind, he already knew what the righteous fucking Winchesters thought of him and Richie. "Haven't seen you around since the other night, does Richard keep you locked up too?" The question was meant to be combative but Seth chuckled as if it were a joke.

"Yeah, somethin' like that." The way Sam kept shifting in his chair and looking at everyone that passed by sideways was making Seth itch. "You're in a bar, are you gonna drink or did you just come up here for the ambiance?"

"Maybe I just didn't want to sit in that room by myself. Honestly though, I don't know why I'm up here. Your bar is basically a cover for the culebra mafia, it's pretty much a hunter's worst nightmare." Sam shook his head, he did look pretty miserable. "How did you ever get used to this?"

"I didn't, I started shootin' up smack the day we moved into this place. You'd be surprised at the amount of shit that doesn't bother you when you're high as fuck." Fuck it, the kid already thought the Gecko brothers were scum, what was one more sin added to a list so long it could shame the devil?

"Oh."

Sam stared at him uncomfortably from across the table but he just grinned at the kid. "Well I'm done with that shit now.......Richie's been keepin' me holed up in our apartment till I kicked the worst of it. See that guy over there?" Sam followed his finger across the bar to where a huge man lounged against the wall near the front door, watching them like a hawk. He had long hair slicked back into a ponytail, the muscles of a professional wrestler and a nose that had been broken more than a few times. "He's my babysitter while little brother's away on business." He chuckled at the absurdity of his situation. Finally the kid cracked a smile, his teeth flashing in the dim light of the bar. In that moment Seth became acutely aware of just how screwed he was, that smile was a brand new kind of drug and he'd do anything for another hit. "Speakin' of brothers, where's yours tonight? I thought you two were, uh, attached at the hip or somethin'."

Sam's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. " _Your_ brother took him on a hunting trip, I figured you knew. Apparently he found the.......woman we helped escape the other night. I tried to go with them but he only wanted to take one of us, I think he chose Dean cause he knows my brother can't stand him."

"Yeah, that sounds like Richie, he can be a real asshole." He couldn't help laughing, his brother took getting under people's skin to a whole new level of fucked up. "I heard they had a lead on Florinda, that bitch is a real nasty piece of work but I'm sure that your brother can handle her, you guys bein' some kinda badass hunters and all."

"So did your brother tell you about his insane plan to break your ex-wife out of prison?" Sam's voice dripped with disapproval, obviously he wasn't too keen on the whole idea.

"Yeah, I mighta heard somethin' about it." He wasn't about to admit that it was actually _his_ idea, not when the kid was just starting to warm up to him. "He can do it you know, he's the one that busted me out."

"Did he tell you that he wants me and Dean to help him out? I mean, we've done some pretty illegal stuff before but this is really crossing a line, we're not some common criminals!" The outrage in his voice made it plain, committing crimes like this might be well and good for the Gecko brothers but the noble Winchesters would never stoop so low. Having Sam look down on him didn't bother Seth, he had been treated like trash his whole life starting from the day he was born. What got under his skin was that the kid was completely blind to the fact that the Gecko brothers and the Winchesters really weren't that different at all.

"Listen kid I ain't gonna lie, I got what I deserved when I went to prison and I shoulda been left in there to rot. It was my own bad deeds and lack of judgement that landed me in the joint. But Vanessa?........The worst thing she ever did was fall in love with me. She shouldn't've been locked up in the first place and now that there's this, uh, _ghost_ after her, well do you really think it's right to leave her there?"

They sat in silence for a bit, both sipping their drinks in quiet contemplation. Sam set his beer down with a sigh. "We were never going to let the ghost have her, hell I'm not sure if it really is a ghost. I guess the best way to protect her is to break her out." He sounded reluctant to admit it but at least he did. Seth was glad to have the kid on his side, he relaxed in his seat, taking a long pull off his Old Fashioned. "What was it like, being married to her?"

The question was so unexpected that Seth choked on his drink, coughing and spluttering into his glass. "Jesus kid, give a man a little warning before you go askin' questions like that! Why the hell do you wanna know anyway?"

For a brief moment Sam's face became a mask of pain but he quickly schooled his features to calmness. "I had a girlfriend a little while back, Jess.......I was going to ask her to marry me."

"What happened, she dump you?"

Sam's eyes glistened wetly and for a moment Seth worried that the kid was going to cry but he blinked back his tears, quickly swiping at one that escaped the corner of his eye. "She died."

"Oh."

Unbidden images of Kate went tumbling through his mind, a dazzling smile flashing in the sun, soft arms twined about his neck, beautiful, bright green eyes. Incorrigibly optimistic and vastly perceptive beyond her years, Kate was the kind of woman that made him want to be a better man so that he would be worthy of her love. He had never come close to deserving her but she had loved him anyway. Him and his psychotic brother. Thinking of her was almost painful enough to send him crawling back to the needle. "How did it happen?" He could've kicked himself for asking but focusing on someone else's pain somehow lessened his own. Sam stared down at the table morosely and Seth let him be, he obviously didn't want to talk about it.

"She was killed by a demon." He waited for more but Sam sat silently with his eyes cast down.

"Excuse me, a _demon?_ Is that some kinda monster that you guys hunt?"

"As in a demon from hell." Sam looked up from the table, his eyes conveying the gravity of his words and Seth gravely regretted having asked. He had never been a believer, though Kate had come close to convincing him, but even though he liked to think that she was up in heaven with the rest of her family he had always assumed that when he died he would rot in the ground. Now he had confirmation that there was a place in the afterlife for Seth Gecko and it certainly wasn't heaven. Fuck it. With a lifetime of terrible deeds under his belt why the fuck should he start worrying about it now?

"Why would a demon from, uh....hell, kill your girlfriend?"

"Dean and I, we're still trying to figure that out. I'll tell you one thing though, these strange occurrences that Vanessa's been having, they're connected."

This whole situation was getting weirder by the minute, Seth's mind was reeling. "Wait, are you sayin' that a _demon_ is tryin' to kill Vanessa? Why would somethin' like that even be interested in her? It seems pretty off the wall."

"We're not sure what's going on with her exactly but it gets weirder than that." Sam pulled out his phone and swiped through until he found what he was looking for then he slid it across the table.

"WHAT THE FUCK? You wanna tell me why you have a picture of my ex-wife wearin' next to nothin' on your phone?" It was odd to see Vanessa sporting a faded Smurfs t-shirt and a pair of cutesy, Hello Kitty undies with blonde hair cascading down around her shoulders. As long as he had known the woman she had kept her hair dyed black and she would _never_ wear anything with a cartoon character on it.

"That's a picture of my girlfriend. That's Jess, not Vanessa." Sam sounded absolutely certain so Seth held the phone up to get a better look at the picture. This version of Vanessa looked more innocent, happier even, and she was younger than Vanessa was now. Unless his ex-wife had been having a secret affair with a twelve year old boy when she was twenty then what Sam said had to be true. This was the recently deceased Jess, not Vanessa Styles.

"But how.....I mean they look....."

Sam plucked the phone out of his hand with a wry twist to his mouth. "Yeah, just imagine how I felt when I saw her at the prison. It was.....uncomfortable to say the least. Jess was adopted when she was just a baby, maybe......I don't know, maybe Vanessa was the big sister that she never knew she had."

It could be possible. Vanessa's parents had been just as fucked up as his were, both crackheads and both abusive as fuck. Vanessa and her siblings had spent so much time bouncing from foster home to foster home she used to joke that she wasn't even sure who her real family was anymore. By fourteen she was pulling cons and by sixteen she was running with a crew, pulling off heists. That was how they had met actually.

"So you guys _think_ this whole thing _might_ be connected? Sounds like alotta ifs and maybes for a coupla, supposedly, badass hunters. How're you gonna waste this thing if you don't even know what it is?"

Sam pursed his lips and shook his head irritably. "Half the job is _"wasting"_ things. The other half, the part that no one tells you about, is research. Which is actually what we were in the middle of doing before your brother came in and dragged Dean off on a hunt. You know, I don't get it, I thought the Gecko brothers were supposed to be a team. Why did Richard take my brother with him and leave you here to drink alone?"

"Well I ain't drinkin' alone, am I?" Seth clinked his glass against Sam's beer, the kid gave him a wry grin and they both drank. "Richie wanted to get this buttoned up tight and apparently I'm a fuckin' invalid." Raising his hand he tried to hold it steady but it wobbled treacherously. "I'm afraid I'm not much good for shootin' or shavin' these days." He scratched at his beard irritably and laughed to lighten the mood.


	11. Sammy

Not for the first time Sam wondered about the folly of what he was doing. He wanted to blame his foolishness on the amount of alcohol he had consumed but he was no lightweight and there really was no excuse for this.

They had spent hours sitting in the bar, drinking round after round and swapping stories about hunting and pulling off heists, respectively. Sam knew that he wasn't one much for telling a good story, whenever they met up with other hunters it was his brother that always regaled them with tales of their more successful hunts, but Seth listened intently to each story, asking questions about different weapons they used and laughing in all the right places. It was odd, the only person he had ever really been able to talk to comfortably about hunting was his brother but he found himself opening up to Seth, answering his questions freely and telling him more than he really should have. When Sam asked him about what it was like to be a professional criminal Seth seemed reluctant to speak of it but after some slight prodding he finally yielded. There was a deep sadness in his eyes when he spoke about his brother, it was obvious that they had had a falling out but Sam kept his curiosity at bay and listened quietly as Seth recounted some of their earlier exploits. He started off slowly but it soon became apparent that, much like Dean, Seth Gecko loved to tell a story. Once he picked up momentum a light turned on in those deep brown eyes and Sam soon found himself utterly captivated by the older man, drinking up every word about safes, guns, and playing the perfect con. It was odd how similar and vastly different their worlds were. After an indiscernible number of drinks Seth leaned across the table with a spark in his eye that spelled trouble and he asked Sam if he would help him out with something.

Now Sam leaned against the edge of the tiled counter in Seth Gecko's bathroom while the man himself sat in a chair, watching him stoically. Upstairs in the bar Seth had been all smiles and spitfire attitude but now that they were alone he had gone quiet, it was a bit unnerving. Sam swirled a badger hair brush in a shallow dish of soap to work up a good lather, while Seth watched on with a hot, damp washcloth pressed to the bottom half of his face. Seth's suit jacket hung from the back of his chair and now that he had his sleeves rolled up Sam could see a flame tattoo on his right arm. Sam wasn't one much for tattoos, though he did have one himself, but he was intrigued by the sinuous pattern of black flames running up Seth's forearm and he wondered how much of his body was covered in ink. Once the lather was thick enough Sam took the washcloth from him then placed a towel on his shoulder and began dabbing the brush across his face. Seth regarded him with dark, hungry eyes as he worked the brush into his thick scrub of beard and he tried desperately to keep his mind on the task at hand.

Turning to set the brush on the counter top he caught his wide eyed reflection in the mirror and grimaced. Sam Winchester was supposed to be some kind of badass hunter but there was something about Seth's intrepid stare that brought out the timid college kid in him. He took a deep, steadying breath before turning back around. Leaning in close he began to run the blade of a straight razor against Seth's skin using short, smooth strokes. Thick swaths of the dark beard began to come away in foamy clumps that Sam wiped on the towel draped across Seth's shoulder. With their faces mere inches apart Sam was presented with a myriad of scents, rich, soapy lather, the spicy notes of Seth's cologne and a musky scent that was all his own, he inhaled deeply and tried not to be too obvious about smelling the other man. Their closeness was becoming difficult to bear and Sam was relieved when he swiped the last vestige of thick hair from the older man's face, wiping it onto the towel with a sigh.

"There, all done." He leaned back against the counter top to admire his handiwork and was completely astonished at the youthful face staring back at him. "You look incredible! I mean.....the uh, the shave looks good." He could feel his face growing red and he cast his eyes to the floor in embarrassment. Seth rose from his seat and edged in next to him to peer at himself in the mirror. Sam watched out of the corner of his eye as he titled his head this way and that, running a hand along his jawline. He nodded his appreciation and smiled.

"You're right, it's a damn fine shave. Thanks a lot kid."

Even though he had tried to tell himself that this was just an innocent shave Sam had known where this was going the moment Seth asked him. Now that he was through with the shave there was no more pretending that he had a legitimate reason to be here and Sam began to panic. What would his brother say if he knew where he was and what he was doing? Dean would just pretend to brush it off, act like it didn't bother him while his heart shattered in his chest.

"Okay well, now that you're all cleaned up I guess I should be getting back to my room?" He hadn't meant for that to sound like a question. Sam shook his head, trying to clear his mind, and a cascade of shaggy hair fell across his eyes.

Seth moved to stand in front of Sam, placing a hand against the counter on either side of him, blocking him in. "You said you didn't wanna be alone, why don't you just stay here and we can keep each other company." Sam's heart hammered in his chest as Seth reached up to brush the hair back from his face, tucking it behind his ear carefully. His fingers lingered, tracing the shell of his ear before easing down to grip the back of his neck and he looked up at Sam through his dark, beautiful lashes. "Hey Sam, c'mere." Though he was almost half a foot shorter than Sam Seth's self-assured attitude and domineering presence was undeniable, Sam lowered his head obediently, breathing heavily as he closed the distance between them. When he felt those big, soft lips press against his own all of his doubts melted away and he gripped Seth's shoulders tightly, pulling him closer. Seth licked along the seam of his lips and he parted them slightly to let the older man slip his tongue inside. As they kissed with ravenous intensity Sam's hands moved of their own accord, running up Seth's arms to squeeze his biceps through the fabric of his shirt. He needed more contact, that shirt had to go.

The buttons were proving to be difficult, they kept slipping out of his fingers as Sam divided his attention between lapping his tongue into Seth's mouth while he tried to undress him. Seth laughed when he tore the shirt open impatiently and shucked it to the floor. Next to go was the white undershirt and Sam leaned back to admire Seth's muscular build, the man was jacked to say the least. A tiny gold cross hung from a delicate chain, resting against his bare chest, it was completely incongruous in every sense of the word but at that moment he wasn't really interested in the odd adornment. Seth stood back with an arrogant curve to his lips, basking in the attention. "Oh you like that?" Sam bit his lip smiled down at him, the man was incorrigibly cocky. Though he had thought about it from time to time Sam had never been with another man, it was certainly different. He was all hard planes and thick muscle, the only softness Seth had was in his gorgeous brown eyes and his delectably lush lips. Sam ran his fingers across his heavily muscled chest then down the ridges of his abs and Seth stood still for him, letting him explore. He wanted to feel Seth's bare skin against his own, he quickly shed his t-shirt, tossing it to the floor then circled his arms around his waist, pressing him close.

A low, rumbling growl sounded in the back of Seth's throat and he lapped his tongue down the side of Sam's neck, trailing down past his collarbone to his chest. As he worshipfully lavished his pecs with soft kisses and gentle bites his hands slid down and Sam gasped when Seth cupped his erection, squeezing and rubbing him through his jeans. The pressure felt good but his jeans were too constricting and it soon became somewhat painful. As if he could read his mind Seth began working on his belt buckle, that's when Sam's nerves started to get the better of him and a timorous shiver ran through his whole body. 

Seth must have noticed his apprehension, he pulled away and peered up at him, concern painting his face. "Oh Jesus Sam, have you ever?"

Sam could feel his cheeks heating with embarrassment. "No.......I've never been with a guy." His response elicited a wince from the older man.

"Are you sure you want to?"

"Yeah," he swallowed thickly, "but just so you know I'm not........"

"Gay?" Seth chuckled. "Neither am I." He winked and hooked a finger in Sam's belt. Walking backwards Seth sat back down in his chair and pulled Sam along until he was positioned directly in front of him. Nimble fingers made quick work of his belt, then the button of his jeans and Sam helped slide them off, kicking them to the side. Now he stood completely naked before the older man and another nervous tremor shook his body. Seth placed a steadying hand on the small of his back and smiled up at him. "It's okay kid, I've got you." As he stared down into those depthless brown eyes Sam felt a deep calm come over him, though he had every reason not to he trusted Seth and he let himself be guided forward by his capable hands.

Watching Seth lap the precum from his slit was undeniably sexy and a deep moan escaped him as the older man swirled his tongue around the ridge of his head. Seth pressed his tip to his lips and then he was sliding into the heavenly warmth of Seth's mouth. The man wasted no time, swirling and lapping his tongue against his hard cock as he pushed it further in. Each time he pulled back he left Sam's length coated in a sloppy, wet, slick of saliva and soon his lips and all around his mouth was glistening wetly. His mouth inched further and further down until suddenly Sam felt his tip hit the back of Seth's throat. He almost pulled back, worried that he was going too far but Seth held his hips firmly and began swallowing around the hard length as he deep throated his dick. When Sam felt the muscles of Seth's throat contract around his erection he moaned an "Ohhh." and grasped two handfuls of Seth's thick, silky hair. Seth smiled around his mouthful and hummed an "Mmmhmm." against his cock, the vibration sent a shiver down his spine. While Seth worked his mouth over his dick he cupped Sam's balls with one hand, gently massaging them, while his other hand grabbed at his ass, digging his big fingers into the meat of his cheeks and pushing him forward encouragingly. His hips started to thrust forward, meeting Seth on each downstroke and soon he was fucking himself into his mouth. It happened so gradually Sam barely noticed, Seth's hand slid down, little by little until suddenly Sam felt his fingers graze his hole. In his mind he thought he should be freaking out about this but everything that Seth was doing felt so damn good and he realized that he actually liked it. When Seth pressed a finger against him, just putting pressure on his hole without pushing in it sent him unexpectedly over the edge. "Oh, shit Seth! I'm about to cum!" He tried to pull out but Seth held him tightly and shoved his hips forward so Sam fucked his orgasm into his mouth, spilling his cum inside.

As soon as Seth released him he stumbled backwards, legs weak, and caught himself against the tiled sink counter, he stared down at the older man in amazement. Seth looked up at him silently as he wiped the wetness still streaming from his eyes then he rose smoothly from his seat and advanced on him, pressing up against Sam and pinning him against the counter. He reached up and grasped the back of his neck and Sam let him drag his head down for a kiss, lowering his lips to Seth's obligingly. They stood with their lips pressed tightly together then Seth slipped his tongue between Sam's lips, pushing his way in. A flood of salty warmth flowed into his mouth and Sam tried to pull away in alarm but Seth had a firm grip on the back of his head, holding him tightly as he pushed his mouthful of semen into Sam. He locked eyes with Seth, pleading without words but the older man just smiled against his lips and nodded as if to say, _"Just take it."_ Sam realized that fighting against him was futile so he forced himself to relax and swallowed down his own load. Finally Seth released him, a viscous bead of cum slid down the side of the older man's chin and Sam leaned forward to lick it back up to the corner of his mouth, after all what was a tiny drop compared to what he had just swallowed?

"Wow! That was......just wow!" Sam was truly at a loss for words and Seth chuckled at his inability to articulate a proper sentence. Looking down he saw that Seth had undone his belt buckle and he had his hand shoved down his pants, moving in a quick rhythm. "Do you want me to, um...do you now?" He swallowed nervously, he wanted to make Seth feel as good as he did but he had never had a cock in his mouth and he was unsure of himself.

Seth smiled brightly and shook his head. "Nah, I haven't been with anyone in months. I'm wound up so tight I'd probably blow my load all over your face before my dick even touched those pretty, pretty lips." He reached up and slid a finger along Sam's _"pretty, pretty lips"_ appreciatively as he stared at him with eyes half lidded. "But you can get a feel for it, if you want to." He undid his pants the rest of the way then slid them to the floor and kicked them away. Sam gaped at Seth's impressive cock, it stood up heavily from a dark patch of pubic hair, he looked painfully hard. He pulled Seth closer, kissing him thoroughly as he slid a hand along his length, his cock was incredibly hot and it throbbed in response to his touch. Seth rutted against him, fucking himself into Sam's fist as he ran his mouth along the side of his neck, nipping and biting at him. As he thrust his hips faster and faster Seth's mouth ran on in an unending litany. "Oh fuck. Oh shit. Oh fuck. Fuck. Fuck! That's real fuckin' good." Soon he could feel Seth's dick throbbing, pulsating in his hand and he knew he was close. "Oh fuck Sammy, that feels so damn good!" Hearing his nickname on Seth Gecko's tongue was so hot it almost got him hard again. Seth thrust up hard into his hand and cum spurted over his fingers and splashed across his stomach, dripping down into his navel. Seth grabbed his shoulder to steady himself and they stood together, both panting heavily as they came down from their sex high.

Grabbing the damp washcloth he had used to warm up his face earlier Seth began wiping the cum from Sam's stomach, the cloth had gone cold and he broke into goosebumps as the older man scrubbed at the mess. All Sam could do was watch on in a daze.

"You called me Sammy."

Seth peered up at him, cocking a curious eyebrow. "Yeah, it kinda just slipped out." He shrugged.

Sam willed his mouth to stay shut but it seemed to have a mind of it's own. "Nobody but Dean ever calls me Sammy."

Seth winced. "Oh."


	12. Back in the Saddle

Early in the evening Dean had been holed up in his room at Jacknife Jed's, sifting through his father's hunting journal while Sam clicked away on his laptop, trying to find anything that would help them with Vanessa's case. It was slow going, they kept hitting dead ends with their research and day by day they were running out of leads. It didn't help that the one person that was sure to have some insight on this case was MIA. Dean had called their father every day since visiting Vanessa but he never got an answer and he had left so many messages that the inbox was full. He knew he shouldn't be worried, John Winchester was an incredibly skilled hunter, he practically set the bar to which other hunters compared themselves, but after months of radio silence Dean was beginning to suspect the worst and he knew that Sam was too. Bobby told them not to worry but Dean could tell it was eating at him too, he seemed more cantankerous each time he came to visit which made him damn near insufferable to be around. It was all adding up, days of dead ends, a missing father, constantly getting chewed out by Bobby, living in a nest of bloodsucking snakes that he couldn't kill, and he kept jumping out of his skin anytime his brother was near, which was pretty much all the time. The pressure was building and Dean was fitting to blow a gasket. When that obnoxious prick Richard Gecko busted into their room and practically dragged him off by the scruff of his neck he put up a good fight for appearances but truthfully he was ready and raring to go. It had been weeks since he had been on a hunt, Dean _needed_ to stab something.

Four hours later he was beginning to think that he should have put up more of a fight. Now he found himself skulking through a derelict apartment building on the outskirts of Dallas. Dean wrinkled his nose against the pungent odor of stale piss as he carefully made his way down a dark, littered hallway. Other than his companions he hadn't seen a single soul since entering the seemingly abandoned building but there was plenty of evidence that this place still had inhabitants. His flashlight shone on a small scattering of dirty needles which he skirted carefully, shaking his head with disgust. _Humans._ No matter how terrible the monsters he hunted were he firmly believed that humankind was it's own worst enemy.

Further down the hallway ahead of him he could just make out his new _"hunting buddies"_ in the dim glow of the streetlights filtering through a dirty window. Cris took the lead, his head moving ceaselessly from side to side as he scanned the shadows for threats. Of all the culebras he had met recently Dean found that he disliked Cris the least, even despite the fact that he was Richard Gecko's right hand man. Somber and slight in stature Cris didn't look much like much of a threat but Dean had seen the squat Mexican break up bar fights that even Jacknife Jed's gargantuan bouncers couldn't quell, all without mussing a single hair in his meticulously slicked back ponytail. He wasn't one for conversation but Cris was a man of action and Dean could respect that. As for the _other_ members of their party, he could have done without.

Behind Cris, Richard strode along with his usual arrogant swagger. He stayed lost in thought during most of their trek through the building and was uncharacteristically quiet. Dean was grateful that Richard wasn't feeling chatty, he wasn't in the mood for his bullshit. He wasn't entirely silent though, Dean could hear him muttering quietly and he shook his head as if he was carrying on an argument with himself. One of his hands was tucked into his pocket and Dean knew that he was fondling his "lucky blade". With it's black blade and a wicked looking eye carved into it's aged bone handle that knife looked like it must have some serious mojo and Dean was itching to get his hands on it so he could unlock it's secrets. Unfortunately for him Richard never seemed to let the knife out of his sight and something told him that asking to borrow it was out of the question.

The last member of their merry little band was Carlos. He skulked down the hallway just ahead of Dean, his black, wide brimmed hat and dark leather duster blended into the shadows so well that at times Dean had to squint to keep him in his line of vision. To Dean, Carlos was something of an enigma. He had an air of arrogance about him that rivaled even Richard Gecko's, but he seemed like a smart guy and the culebras back at Jed's held Carlos in high regard, they always obeyed his commands without question. It made Dean wonder why a crazed maniac like Richard was running things instead of a level headed, well respected culebra like Carlos. He figured the answer to that question was in their odd dynamic. There was an unmistakable hatred between the two culebras, at times it seemed that Richard could barely tolerate Carlos's presence yet he kept him close and trusted him to run things as the Gecko brothers' second in command. Carlos seemingly despised the Gecko brothers yet he carried out their orders with unwavering loyalty. His obvious hatred for Richard was something that Dean could sympathize with, the younger Gecko was an insufferable asshole. His hatred for Seth, however, was something else altogether. It hadn't taken long for Dean to catch on that Carlos was something of a speciesest. He had seen it before, in fact many of the creatures that he hunted thought themselves far superior to the humans they fed on. In a way it made sense, he wasn't about to go striking up a conversation with a cow, though if cows suddenly gained the ability to speak and began begging for their lives he supposed he probably wouldn't be eating burgers anymore. A shiver ran through him as the word _vegetarian_ crossed his mind and he cut off that line of thinking before it went any further.

They combed through the building, searching from the first floor up to the third without any signs of life. It wasn't until they were halfway through the fourth floor that they finally heard the muffled sound of voices coming from one of the apartments ahead. Cris held up his hand, gesturing for them to halt, while he slowly crept to the door and pressed his ear to it to listen. After about five minutes or so Cris carefully made his way back to where they waited. "She's in there alright but she's not alone. Perhaps we should wait and call for backup?"

"And give the bitch another chance to escape? Fuck that! We're getting her back right now." Richard's tone and demeanor made it obvious that this was not open for debate and both Cris and Carlos nodded their assent. "Alright, once we're in Cris, you're on point. Winchester, you're coming in behind him with me, and Carlos, you've got our backs." Carlos shook his head angrily.

"Let the _hunter_ take point, then Cris and I will follow while you stay back, that way we can be sure that you are well protected."

Dean was surprised at the level of concern that Carlos showed for his boss since their usual exchanges were typically filled with an obvious and barely contained animosity. Richard chuckled quietly and shook his head. "Oh Carlito, your concern for my safety is......heartwarming. Really, it touches me right here." He pounded a fist to his chest as he shook with laughter. Carlos's face darkened and he scowled at his boss. Dean realized that Richard was making a joke at the man's expense but he had no idea what that joke might be, just another clue to their odd relationship that he filed away in the back of his mind to contemplate later. They had business to be about and he didn't need a fight breaking out now before they even got to their enemies.

"Alright, I ain't afraid to go in first, you two hang back and protect your _boss_. You'd probably just get in my way anyway." The three culebras looked at Dean as if they had forgotten he was there until he spoke up. Before they could utter a word or change the plan he was off down the hallway, he crept to the door and tested the handle but it was locked. Of course there wasn't a locked door that could keep a Winchester out. Rummaging in his pocket he quickly produced the tools of his trade to pick the lock but before he had a chance to use them there was a hand on his shoulder, pulling him back from the door with a firm grip.

 _"That's real cute and all, but that door probably has a chain too."_ Richard whispered in his ear. Dean cringed involuntarily at the warm wash of the culebra's breath on his neck and he suddenly felt the need for a shower. Shaking Richard's hand off he rounded on him in irritation.

 _"Then wha-"_ Before the question left his lips Richard answered him by rearing back and kicking in the door in one fluid motion. Pieces of wood went flying as the chain lock was wrenched completely out of the wall and left dangling impotently from the door that now hung askew on it's hinges. Dean gawked at the wreckage, to say he was impressed would be an understatement, though he'd sooner shoot himself in the foot with his own gun then let Richard know it.

Gun at the ready, Dean pushed past the wreckage of the door and rushed in with the culebras following close behind. The door let out into a small entryway and beyond that the kitchen. There were electric lanterns placed about the room and in the pale light he could see a small group of people clambering up from their seats at a rickety old table to assess the threat. Dean caught a familiar face in that group, it was the very same woman that had gotten his brother shot in the arm a couple of weeks back. He kept his gun trained on Florinda while trying to keep an eye on the rest of her companions. "Alright, we're not lookin' for any trouble. we just came for her," he gestured at Florinda with his gun, "she's a wanted woman."

One of the group, a tall, heavily muscled man sporting a crew cut and a pair of army fatigues, burst into booming laughter as if Dean had just told him the most hilarious joke, then his eyes turned completely black. Dean had just a moment to register how entirely screwed he was before he went flying backwards through the air. He saw stars as his head slammed into the wall and little bits of drywall rained down on him, making him cough and splutter as he hung there, about a foot off the floor.

"Dean Winchester, what a welcome surprise!" The large demon grinned at him with wicked delight. Dean struggled furiously against his invisible bonds but it was a futile effort, he was stuck fast. As a family of hunters the Winchesters had made a lot of enemies but nothing compared to the hatred they had evoked from Hell and it's minions. The feeling was mutual. He would have never agreed to go on this hunt without his brother if there had been mention of demons. Now he was caught with his pants down, no holy water, no salt, no Sam, just a pistol full of wooden bullets, a couple of stakes, and his hunting knife, all useless against demons. Craning his neck he looked to the doorway where his companions stood completely unfettered. Richard had his head cocked to the side, studying Dean like he was some sort of insect caught in sticky flypaper.

"These guys friends of yours?" Dean snapped irritably.

Richard's face twisted with disgust. "Hardly!"

"Okay, then why the hell am I the only one stuck to a wall here?"

It was the great, burly demon that answered that question for him, he swaggered towards Dean, obviously pleased with himself. "Because we're family!" Dean grunted like he had just been punched in the gut, his surprised reaction produced some chuckles among the demons. "Oh, your new friends didn't tell you? Yes, the culebras are our brothers and sisters, we could no sooner bend them to our will then they could see what's in our minds by tasting our blood."

Richard scoffed at the man. "We are _not_ brothers." He cocked his head, his eyes narrowed in contemplation. "Maybe.......oh I don't know, distant cousins?"

The demon waved dismissively. "Brothers, cousins, call it what you will, we are both servants of Hell."

Carlos spat on the floor, he shook with rage as he scowled at the hulking demon. _"¡Chingate!_ We cast off the chains of our bondage long ago, we culebras are no longer slaves to the old gods of the Underworld!" Carlos sneered at the demons, glaring at each of them in turn. "You could have joined us in the fight but you chose to stay and serve at the heels of your master, you gutless dogs."

Carlos's vehement words sent a visible wave of anger through the demons, they looked ready to tear him to pieces. Their great, burly leader clenched his fists at his sides, red crept up his neck until his whole face was flushed and he bared his teeth in an outraged grimace. "The master that we serve is a being of true power, worthy of our devotion. You _free people_ crawl on your bellies to do the bidding of the _Lords_ , culebras no different than yourselves! You scorn the Old Gods and worship false idols! Your _Diosa_ is nothing more than a painted whore, placed on a pedestal to be worshiped by fools like you!"

 _"¡Cabron!"_ Carlos rushed across the room and the large demon squared his shoulders, welcoming the confrontation, that is until he saw what the irate culebra was packing beneath his floor length coat. Carlos swept aside his leather duster to draw a sword that was strapped to his hip and with one fluid motion lopped the gigantic demon's head from it's neck. As the demon's head fell to the floor a putrid, black cloud of smoke vomited forth from the decapitated stump, swirling like an angry swarm of gnats. The invisible force pinning Dean to the wall suddenly disappeared and he fell heavily to the floor, scrambling to his feet he looked up just in time to see the black cloud that was the demon come swarming toward him. The inky blackness flew toward his face with malevolent intent but inches from his mouth it stopped abruptly, then cringed away as if repelled. With nowhere to go the demon's spirit rushed past the culebras and out the door. Richard and Cris gaped at him, no doubt surprised that he hadn't been possessed. Dean grinned at them smugly. _That's right you bloodsucking assholes, I've got a few tricks up my sleeve._

Further back in the apartment there was a great commotion, Dean turned to see what the noise was about and the grin slid from his face as a great stream of people came pouring into the kitchen, men and women all with eyes as black as midnight. They swarmed into the room, completely surrounding him and Carlos. For a moment everyone stood stock still, sizing each other up and Dean held his breath as he waited for Richard and Cris to turn tail and bolt out the door, the way was still clear for them. Richard smirked and winked at him like he knew what he was thinking then flicked his wrist, the blade of his knife slid out with a soft _snick._ As if that tiny noise were a cue the culebras launched themselves at the demons and the room descended into pandemonium.

If the demons fought with any sort of organization he would have been finished but luckily for him Carlito had already done away with their leader. It seemed like the only thing keeping him from getting torn to pieces by demons were the other demons getting in their way in their frenzy to reach him. Dean kept his back to the wall and fought like a madman as he began to recite a passage he knew by heart, speaking loudly so his voice resonated in every corner of the room. _"Exorcizamus te, omnis imundus spiritus, omnis satanica potestas,....."_ A massive, musclebound man shoved his way through the crowd and swung at him with a big, meaty fist. Dean tried to sidestep but he was penned in on all sides, the hit landed squarely on his jaw, snapping his head back and for a moment white spots danced across his vision. _"omnis..... incursio infernalis......... adversarii,....."_ The words for the exorcism spun through his mind in a dizzying swirl. He shook his head to clear it and threw his arms up just in time to block another blow which knocked him backward with the weight of a freight train. Dean ducked low and thrust his hunting knife into the giant demon's midriff, dragging the blade up through vital organs. It would have been a fatal attack, if the man was just a man. The behemoth looked down at the knife protruding from it's middle then back up at Dean. Blood oozed from the demon's mouth, staining it's teeth red as it smiled mirthlessly and grabbed him by the throat, it's massive fingers squeezing. As he fought for air Dean knew it was futile but still he kept on, with his last wheezing breath. _"...omnis..... congregatio...."_ He glared into the depthless oblivion of the demon's black eyes as the world around him went dark. Dean always knew he'd die a hunter's death.

Suddenly he could breathe again and Dean gulped air greedily through a painfully bruised windpipe, as his vision returned he stared in confusion at the demon before him. Black eyes wide with terror the demon writhed in agony, a hellish, fiery light illuminated it from within, flickering like lightening. When the light went out the demon's lifeless body tumbled to the floor and there was Richard Gecko, lucky blade in hand. Dean braced himself against the wall, staring wide eyed at the knife as he tried to catch his breath. "Your knife......your knife can _kill demons?!"_ The words came out in a gravelly croak. He had heard stories of weapons that could kill demons but he thought those were just tall tales that seasoned hunters told to rookies.

Richard grinned, spinning the knife about in a flamboyant display. "Yeah, it kills all kinds of shit." Another demon reared up behind him with a knife of it's own, without missing beat Richard spun about and buried his blade to the hilt in the demon's chest. Wrenching the blade free the culebra peered over his shoulder at him with a cool blue eye. "I can't kill _all_ of them though. You gonna finish what you started Winchester?"

Dean cleared his throat noisily then resumed his recitation as he fought side by side with Richard Gecko. _"et secta diabolica, ergo draco maledicte,"_ Richard's fighting style was an odd mix of martial arts and street brawling. He almost looked like he was dancing as he flowed from one practiced form to another then he would suddenly throw in a headbutt or a right hook. It was clever really, as the combination made him completely unpredictable. One demon came at Richard with a wooden stake raised high and he sent it sprawling on the floor with a sweeping roundhouse kick. Another demon ran at him from behind and Dean intervened, throwing all his weight behind an uppercut that sent the demon staggering back. The demon that had been kicked to the floor hoisted itself up, spitting out a mouthful of blood and teeth it launched itself at Richard, trying to reach him with it's wooden stake. _"ut ecclesiam tuam secura,"_ Dean grabbed the demon, holding the arm with the stake in a firm grip and Richard thrust his knife viciously into it's chest. Just as he pulled his knife free a sallow skinned, wiry woman clawed her way through the fray and took a run at Richard, stake in hand. Dean yelled out a warning and Richard spun about, slashing with his knife but he wasn't quick enough. He cried out, grimacing in agony as the woman plunged the stake deep into his midriff. An inch or two higher and Richard Gecko would've been a pile of ashes on the floor, Dean realized that his warning was probably the only thing that had saved him and he didn't know how he felt about that. Rearing back he punched the woman squarely in the face, knocking her away from the weary culebra. _"tibi facias libertate servire, te rogamus, audi nos!"_

The moment those final words left his lips every last black-eyed-son-of-a-bitch left standing began screaming as huge, inky black clouds of smoke spewed from their mouths. The demonic smoke poured downward, disappearing through the floor as it was compelled back to Hell. More than half of the group dropped to the floor, now that they were free of demonic possession their bodies no longer had the strength to carry on naturally. The few survivors looked about in a frightened daze as they took in the nightmare around them.

With the demons gone Dean could see that their other two culebra companions had survived the fight as well. Carlos stood surrounded by a circle of bodies, some decapitated, some in smaller pieces. The culebra carefully cleaned his sword on the shirt of one of his victims before sheathing it at his hip and tucking it back beneath his leather duster. Cris stood at the far end of the room with their prisoner in tow. Florinda whimpered and tried to jerk out of his grasp but the little man held her tight, he wasn't about to let her escape a second time. He had fought hard for his prize, the bodies at his feet all had limbs bent at wrong angles, some had their heads on backwards. Carlos eyed the number of dead at his friend's feet appreciatively and gave him a respectful nod. Cris just shrugged, as if taking down that number of enemies with his bare hands was unremarkable. Perhaps for him it was.

Dean shook his head in disgust as he overlooked the room. Hunting always had it's casualties but even one was too much in his book, the entire room was a bloodbath. He glanced over at Richard who surveyed the scene with mild interest. The culebra looked weary to the bone, his shoulders sagged and Dean noticed that he was bleeding from about a dozen different places, not to mention he still had a wooden stake buried in his midriff. Richard noticed him staring and looked down at the stake as if he had forgotten it was there, hissing through clenched teeth he pulled the stake free with a pained wince and dropped it to the floor. Blood oozed out of the wound in a fresh stream that quickly soaked through his suit. Apparently culebras could only heal so much.

The next ordeal Dean had to face was arguing with the culebras about helping the survivors. On a normal hunt Dean would usually try to explain to the survivors about what had happened then make sure they were well enough to get home. Anyone that was too injured to leave on their own he would drive to the hospital with his brother. Well, this was anything but a normal hunt and the people he was working with weren't exactly his usual hunting partners. The culebras were anxious to get their prisoner back to Jed's before the sun came up and they refused to be delayed. In the end they came to a compromise. Dean settled for giving the victims a quick explanation about demonic possession before calling 911. In turn, the culebras agreed that they wouldn't eat any of the bewildered people.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello my darlings, I've missed you so.  
> I now know what it feels like to be one of the Walking Dead, suffice it to say that conventional insomnia medication is not for me. Back to my natural remedy, which is better for writing anyway. Expect more updates sooner than later.


	13. Cold Grey Light of Dawn

Though he was damn near starving Richie drove back to Jed's at a leisurely pace, he needed time to mull over the night's unexpected events and plan accordingly. Or maybe he was just playing chicken with the sun.

By the time he pulled his Camaro into the back lot of Jacknife Jed's the early morning sky was just turning a cold, steely grey. Cris and Carlos were already waiting on him in the loading dock with their prisoner hanging limply between them. Richie said nothing as he swept past, he simply snapped his fingers and they followed, dragging Florinda behind. Walking toward the elevator he could see that Dean was already inside. _Anxious to get back to his precious baby brother no doubt._ "Hey, hold up Winchester." Richie had to shout to be heard over the din in the loading dock. Dean looked up from studying the panel of buttons, he smiled and flipped Richie off as the elevator doors slid closed.

 _"Fucking prick."_ Richie grumbled in irritation. Leaning back against the wall he dug out his pack of smokes and lit one as he settled in to wait. Both Cris and Carlos looked less than pleased with the delay but they said nothing to provoke him, they knew the only thing keeping him from raging at them right then were the laborers working the loading dock. It was never a good idea to chew management out in front of subordinates, it tended to weaken the chain of command. 

As the minutes ticked by he grew more impatient. He was tired, hungry, and sticky with blood, some of it was demon but most of the mess was his own. Of course, the elevator wasn't the only way to get downstairs, Jacknife Jed's was riddled with secret passageways that led to almost anywhere in the temple. The problem with the passageways was that they were confusingly labyrinthine in their construction, trying to navigate from one floor to the next would undoubtedly take much longer than simply waiting out the elevator. When he had the time and energy Richie didn't mind using the passages, every trip taken through those ancient halls was like an exciting little adventure. Hidden away in those dark, dusty corridors were rooms filled with relics from a long forgotten era, shrines dedicated to archaic, obsolete gods, sacrificial altars covered in dust and forever stained with the blood of countless offerings, and sarcophagi filled with the ashes of culebras killed in ancient battles. Most of the culebras at Jed's believed the passages to be haunted, they would gather in corners, whispering about strange voices and old, vengeful gods. Richie didn't know much about old gods but he was sure that he had felt the presence of something tantalizingly powerful lurking in the dark. Sometimes he thought he could hear it calling to him from unfathomable depths, like if he just kept searching deep enough he would find the secret of it's power............or maybe he would just lose himself in the darkness.........

_Ding!_

The elevator doors slid open to a sterile, stainless steel interior gleaming brightly beneath white fluorescent lights. Richie pulled himself from his reverie and followed the other three culebras in. He waited until the doors closed before flipping the emergency stop to halt the elevator and turned to glare at Cris and Carlos. Most of his workers would shy away from his displeasure but not these two. Carlos returned his glare with one of his own, Richie might have a leash on him but that did nothing for the animosity between them. Cris just took it in stride, the ancient Mayan had seen rulers come and go in his long, long years at Jed's, yet he remained.

"She was supposed to be ALONE! You told me your guys said she was all by herself in that building, not hosting a party for a bunch of fucking demons!" Richie was practically foaming at the mouth he was so enraged.

Cris simply shrugged, like it was no big deal that they had almost been torn to pieces. "We went on the intel we were given _jefe._ The Dallas crew told me that she was by herself, I did not know that they were so.....unreliable."

"You call that _UNRELIABLE?!_ For fuck's sake Cris we were set up! I'd call _that_ pretty goddamned _TREACHEROUS!"_ Of course what he didn't say hung in the air with a deafening silence. The traitor could have been either of them. Cris simply stared at him with that fucking unshakable demeanor that drove him absolutely mad. Carlos glared at him with barely contained hatred burning in his eyes. Richie clutched a hand to his breast as an uncomfortable squirming wormed it's way around inside his chest. Carlos stared at the hand and Richie quickly snatched it away. Though the elevator was quite large he suddenly found it too confining, he turned to flip the emergency stop switch and they continued their descent.

He kept his eye on the digital display above the door, impatiently waiting for the number for his floor to come up while he spoke instructions to his men without turning to look at them. "Find out who double-crossed us. Find out what those fucking hellspawn are up to. You don't eat and you don't sleep until you've wrung every bit of info out of the bitch."

_"Si jefe."_

"It will be done."

The elevator doors opened out onto the third floor and Richie rushed out into the hallway. The writhing in his chest had quickly grown from a mild discomfort to excruciatingly painful. Though he was eager to be away he turned back to the elevator, holding the doors open to take one last look at their hard-won prisoner. Under the pressure of his gaze Florinda finally dragged her eyes up from the floor to meet his stare. Though she seemed defeated there was still a hint of defiance in those dark eyes. "Carlito, when you're finished go ahead and feed her to your girlfriend, I know that bitch is always hungry." Richie couldn't help but smile as he watched absolute terror chase that last vestige of resilience from her eyes. Even after the elevator doors closed Florinda's sweet screams followed him down the hallway.

As the elevator resumed it's slow descent to the bottom level of the temple the painful writhing in Richie's chest finally began to subside and he sighed in relief. It was a strange affliction that he suffered from, his curiosity about it had led him to a very awkward visit to the radiologist. With a fat bankroll and an implicit demand for absolute discretion Richie obtained a most peculiar chest x-ray. The transparent image revealed something that he already knew but wanted to see for himself. Inside his chest were two sinuous figures, two snakes twined together. Most of the time the snakes slept curled up together. Sometimes the snakes fought, each trying to encircle the other in it's choking coils. It was when the snakes fought that caused Richie agonizing bouts of pain.

A culebra's anatomy was different from a human's in many ways but it was the _'iik_ , the sacred snake that contained their soul, that gave them such great power and the gift of eternal life. Of course eternal life didn't necessarily last an _eternity_. A culebra could die from just minutes of exposure to the sun, it was an excruciatingly painful way to die. Being stabbed in the chest with a wooden instrument would also do the trick, it was a much quicker and humane way to go as far as culebra kills went. Upon a culebra's untimely demise the _'iik_ carried their soul back to the Underworld to serve the Gods as they did in days of old. Such was the price of immortality.

The culebra Lords had knowledge gleaned from those ancient Underworld Gods, they knew the secret of removing a person's soul without slaying the host. Once upon a time Carlos had gotten on the bad side of one of the Lords and he had lost his soul in such a way. Richie had been the one to find Carlito's _'iik,_ he used it to work an angle and decided that the best way to hold on to it would be to devour the thing whole. It was a rash decision. Carlito's _'iik_ was a leash and a source of power but it was also a curse, for Richie soon learned that he was bound just as surely as Carlos was. Any time he was away from Carlos for too long the snake became....restless. Any time he was too near Carlos for any period of time the snake would go into fits, longing to be reunited with it's master.

Richie pulled out his pack of cigarettes, tapping one loose he puffed it alight and inhaled deeply, focusing on the familiar, acrid burn filling his lungs. As he exhaled he pushed all thoughts of demons, soul snakes, and tempting darkness from his mind, letting them dissipate like so much smoke. 

When he got back to the apartment the gargantuan culebra he had set to keep an eye on his brother was lounging against the wall in the hallway, tapping away at his phone. "Hey Alex, anything happen last night?"

Alex looked up from his phone, his dark eyes flickered to the apartment door then back to him. "No _jefe,_ nothing you need concern yourself with." Puzzled at the cryptic answer Richie waited for more but the man didn't seem to have anything else.

"Okay.......well now that I'm back why don't you go get some rest. I'll probably need you to babysit again tomorrow night." Alex didn't seem too pleased with his new station but he said nothing as he lumbered away down the hallway.

It was all Richie could do to drag himself through the door, he was exhausted beyond belief. The sun was probably well over the horizon by now and the instinct to hibernate dragged at his eyelids. The loss of blood during last night's fight was also wearing on him and his throat burned with the need to feed.

Slinking his way into the kitchen he was pleasantly surprised to find it in a complete state of disarray. Since moving into Jacknife Jed's the gourmet kitchen that Richie had commissioned specifically to please his brother had gone mostly unused. Seth had been too strung out to bother with much, he usually just had meals brought down to him from the upstairs kitchen and since Richie was mostly on a liquid diet these days he had no need for actual food. Seth loved to cook, it was a skill that he had acquired from spending time in the kitchen with their Uncle Eddie. Growing up his brother used to make these huge, elaborate meals for just the three of them, for Seth it was kind of like saying _"I love you."_ without all the fluff involved.

Richie couldn't help but smile as he surveyed the unholy mess. Scattered about on one counter were tiny jars of seasonings, eggshells, and bits of plastic and paper wrappings. Another counter was completely covered in flour, a hollow tin can with bits of dough and flour coating it sat on it's side in the middle of the mess. The sink was practically overflowing with dishes, a big wooden cutting board took up most of the space, wedged in beside it were knives, measuring cups, mixing bowls, pans, and balanced precariously on top of the whole jumble was a single plate and fork.

Atop the grease spattered stove there were two skillets, one with perfectly browned homefries, the other held a thick sausage gravy. Next to the skillets sat a baking sheet with big, fluffy, golden-brown biscuits. Richie's stomach rumbled loudly. Though this was not the type of nourishment that his body required he fished a plate out of one of the cabinets and piled it high with food. As he scooped mounds of potatoes onto his plate he realized that he hadn't seen Seth cook a thing since he had been broken out of prison. This was probably the first meal that his brother had cooked in years and Richie was glad that he hadn't pulled any punches!

The plan was to go back to his room and feed from one of the packets of blood he kept stored for when he didn't have the time or energy to hunt down a meal, then he could dine on biscuits and gravy to his heart's content. As he wandered into the living room, plate in hand, a wide smile spread across his face. Seth was sitting up on the couch, passed out cold. His head rested against the back of the couch and a steady stream of drool leaked from his wide open mouth, trailing down his cheek. His bare cheek. Richie was delighted to see that the hideous beard that had plagued his brother's face for the past six months was finally gone. Streaks of flour dusted his forearms, across his taut stomach there was a streak of white where he must have been leaning against the counter while he made biscuits and there were two white handprints marking his baggy black sweatpants. Whenever he was in the kitchen Seth would often use his clothing to wipe his hands instead of a towel, it was one of his quirks that drove Richie up the wall. Wedged in between the arm of the couch and Seth's hip was a cup of black coffee that was precariously close to tipping. Richie grinned and shook his head as he carefully lifted the cup and set it on the coffee table beside Seth's empty plate and a second mug.

The t.v. was on with the volume turned low and Red River, an old John Wayne western, was playing. Though he was nearly delirious with exhaustion Richie settled in on the couch next to his brother. He was a sucker for a good western. Richie held his plate close and dug in with avarice. The first bite had him moaning with pleasure, even lukewarm the food was like a little piece of heaven, it was so familiar and comforting. Suddenly Richie was eleven years old again, sitting next to his brother in Uncle Eddie's living room while they watched old westerns on a lazy Sunday morning. As he ate Seth's scent wafted around him, a mix of cooking grease, sweat, faded cologne and a savory fount of blood, blissfully devoid of drugs, cloyed at his senses. Richie ignored the burning bloodlust in his throat, focusing on the plate of food and his hands and the movie playing on the t.v. Though he must have seen Red River dozens of times Richie was on the edge of his seat cushion by the time the shootout in Abilene began. He leaned forward to set his now empty plate on the coffee table next to Seth's, in his distraction the fork went sliding from his plate and fell with a loud clatter onto his brother's dish.

Seth woke with a grunt, he sat straight up, blinking as he looked about in a daze. In this moment, while he was still waking up and all the bullshit plaguing his mind hadn't quite caught up to him, Seth looked like a kid again, innocent and naive. Richie couldn't help but smile and he gripped his brother's shoulder to steady him. "Sorry I woke you, it was an accident. But now that you're up, check it out! Red River's on and your favorite part is coming up!" Seth looked to the t.v. and for just a moment Richie saw that crooked smile that his brother hid from the world, the one without all the teeth and false bravado, it was genuine and it was something that he only ever let show in private moments between the two of them. Then, just as suddenly as it had come, it was gone. Richie watched as the weight of the world came crashing back down, wiping the smile from his brother's face. Seth's eyes flitted down to the hand on his shoulder, Richie followed his gaze and realized, to his dismay, he had forgotten that he was covered in gore. Seth pulled away from him, leaning casually against the armrest of the couch. Richie let his hand fall back to his lap with a sigh.

"Christ Richie, you look like hell. What the heck happened to you, did the bitch kick your ass?"

"It's like Uncle Eddie always says, you're never in a fight with only one asshole. Even assholes have friends." Seth snorted at his retort, Uncle Eddie had about a million proverbs for just about any and every situation.

"Yeah, well I know that even an asshole like _you_ has friends too. What the hell were Cris and Carlos doin' while you were gettin' your ass beat?" Richie knew Seth wasn't purposely trying to be combative, he was just making conversation in his typical fashion, but the the question still rubbed him the wrong way. He stood up, looming over his brother.

"We were fucking ambushed Seth! Not that you give a shit but we almost died last night. The only thing that saved us from being torn to pieces was that pretentious hunter Dean fucking Winchester." 

"Oh." Seth had the grace to look genuinely apologetic. Ready to be done with this whole goddamn day Richie turned to go. "Red River huh? God, I can't remember the last time I saw this one." Richie turned to look down at his brother and Seth smiled weakly. "You missed The Professionals, I fell asleep before it got to the good part. You remember that one?" It was the flimsiest olive branch that his brother extended but Richie was drowning in loneliness and he latched on to Seth's feeble attempt at amnesty like it was a lifesaver.

"Yeah, I remember that one." He smiled and settled back into his seat. "With, uhh, Ralph Bellamy, Burt Lancaster and Lee Marvin, right?" Richie leaned back tentatively, making sure not to get too close to Seth. He didn't want to do anything to ruin the mood. "I love a movie with a good twist."

Seth grinned. "Not much of a twist when you've watched the movie over a dozen times."

Richie couldn't help but laugh, it was true. Neither of them liked many of the newer movies so they would watch and rewatch the same old flicks until they both knew every line and plot twist by heart. Their love for the classics was something that always brought them together. He let himself unwind, zoning out as he watched t.v. with his brother, all the action was over and now it was just the feel good ending but Richie didn't mind, he liked that part too. By the time the music swelled to a crescendo and the credits started rolling he was feeling completely relaxed. Richie stretched languorously then folded his hands behind his head in contentment. He looked over at Seth and was pleased to see him taking his ease beside him on the couch. _Just another lazy Sunday morning._ "Thank you for making breakfast Seth, it was amazing." His brother's face colored and he dropped his eyes bashfully. "Really, it was all so good. That's a lot of food for just the two of us though!"

"Yeah......well......." His brother winced, keeping his eyes carefully averted he rolled his head to the side and rubbed his neck uncomfortably. That's when Richie saw it. At the base of Seth's neck, just above his collarbone was a small, purplish-red hickey. _Someone had left their mark on his brother!_

The realization hit him like a bolt of lightening. _Two plates._ One in the kitchen sink and one on the coffee table. _Two mugs on the table._ Richie's eyes drifted down to the offending cup. When he looked up again Seth was staring at him with a look of abashed apprehension on his face. Richie jumped up from his seat and snatched the second mug from the table. Coffee the color of caramel with a scent sweet enough to set his teeth on edge hit his senses like a slap in the face. Seth only ever drank his coffee black.

"Feeling better brother?"

Seth stood up from his seat and put a little distance between them. He still looked uncomfortable but his jaw had a stubborn set to it. "Yeah, I guess I am."

" _Riiiight._ Good enough to cook..........and good enough to _fuck?_ " The words grated like gravel in his throat.

Seth squared his shoulders and raised his chin to stare down his nose, every inch of him a picture of arrogance. "You got a fuckin' problem? From what I hear you've been gettin' your dick wet on a pretty regular basis."

"Yeah, I have. But that was just fucking, it didn't mean anything. I didn't make any of them any GODDAMNED BREAKFAST!" Richie hated the way his voice cracked when he screamed those last words but he was suddenly sliding out of control and without his brother to stop him he was pretty much at the mercy of his emotions. A home cooked meal from Seth was like an invitation to stick around, if he was going to go through the trouble it meant that he thought that the person was worth it.

"No you don't make them breakfast do you?" Seth's eyes narrowed to slits as he glared at Richie. "Cause when you're done fucking them you just rip their fuckin' throats out." The look of overwhelming disgust on his brother's face sent his fury into overdrive.

"WHAT DO THE LIVES OF SOME RANDOM SKIRTS MATTER TO YOU ANYWAY?" Before he even realized what he was doing the cup in his hand was hurtling through the air, Seth ducked at the last minute and it smashed into the wall behind him in a spray of coffee and porcelain.

Seth straightened from his crouch, his jaw working overtime as he ground his teeth in irritation. "So, we're throwin' temper tantrums now, huh? Grow the fuck up Richard, I'm not dealin' with your baby brother bullshit." His brother turned on his heel and stalked away toward his room.

Richie's fists balled up as he watched his brother go, white hot anger boiled over in his gut. Unbidden his fangs slid down, covering up his human teeth. _"She's a dead bitch."_

Seth stopped walking and turned slowly, glaring at him. He didn't even flinch at Richie's fangs. "What the fuck did you just say?"

"I said she's a fucking walking corpse." Richie growled inhumanly. "When I find out who it is I'm gonna tear the bitch to pieces."

Seth stalked across the room, advancing on him until they were mere inches apart. "Obviously you don't get what's happening here so allow me to spell it out for you. _You,"_ Seth shoved him backward roughly, "and _me_ are not a thing anymore." He kept shoving until he had Richie backed against the wall then he pinned him there with an arm barred across his neck. Richie was so exhausted he couldn't even fight back, he snarled at Seth, baring his fangs. "Our relationship is strictly business now. You got that?" Seth pressed forward until their noses were practically touching, raw aggression radiating from his body. "It's like I already told you, that violent, sex fueled, godforsaken crazy obsession between the two of us is _over_. You need to grow up and accept that fact Richard, cause no amount of kicking and screaming, or flashin' your fuckin' fangs at me," Seth flicked a finger roughly against Richie's right fang, "is gonna change things back to the way they were." His brother pulled him forward then slammed him back so hard that his head bounced against the wall. When Seth let go Richie stayed put. The anger within him twisted together with his hunger and he was afraid he might do something that he couldn't undo. Or maybe he was afraid of getting his ass kicked twice in one day.

As he watched his brother's back retreating down the hallway Richie scrabbled for something to say, _anything,_ but his mind was reeling. _"Bastard."_ Was all he was able to choke out. Seth stopped in the hallway and peered at him over his shoulder.

"What's that line, the one that Lee Marvin says when Belamy's character calls him a bastard?" Richie shook his head, his mouth working soundlessly. "C'mon Richard, I know you know this one. In the movie _The Professionals,_ what's that line that Marvin says when Bellamy calls him a _bastard?"_

It came to him suddenly and before he could stop Richie spit it out by rote. "Yes, in my case an accident of birth. But you, sir, you are a self made man." The words burned like vomit in his throat.

"Yeah, that's the one." And with that Seth disappeared into his room.


End file.
